BX  8 .A7 

Ashworth,  Robert  Archibal 
1871- 

The  union  of  Christian 


45 


\ 


IFuniJ  ®onk  No.  13 

/' 

The  Union  of  Christian 
Forces  in  America 

ROBERT  A.  ASHWORTH,  D.  D. 

PASTOR  OF  THE  FIRST  BAPTIST  CHURCH,  MILWAUKEE,  WIS.;  MEMBER 
OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  COMMITTEE  OF  THE  FEDERAL  COUNCIL  OF  CHURCHES 
OF  CHRIST  IN  AMERICA 


A PRIZE  BOOK 


PHILADELPHIA 

AMERICAN  SUNDAY-SCHOOL  UNION 
1816  Chestnut  Street 


Copyright,  iqis,  by  the 
American  Sunday-School  Union 


PUBLISHER’S  NOTE 


This  book  is  issued  by  the  American  Sunday-School  Union 
under  the  John  C.  Green  Income  Fund.  It  won  the  prize  of 
$1000  in  a competition  for  the  best  manuscript  on  the  sub- 
ject of  Cheistian  Unity.  The  provisions  of  the  fund  author- 
ize the  Union  to  choose  the  subject, — ^which  must  always  be 
germane  to  the  object  of  the  Society, — and  to  control  the 
copyright,  thus  reducing  the  price  of  the  book.  In  this  way 
works  of  a high  order  of  merit  may  be  put  into  circulation  at 
a reasonable  price.  The  author  is  given  large  liberty  in  the 
literary  form,  style,  and  treatment  of  the  subject. 

The  book  treats  a theme  which  is  at  present  of  universal 
interest  throughout  Christendom.  That  it  was  the  prize-win- 
ner in  a competition  in  which  many  able  and  scholarly  manu- 
scripts were  submitted  is  a sufficient  proof  of  its  exceptional 
merit.  The  author  has  served  as  President  of  the  Federa- 
tion of  Churches  in  his  own  city,  and  now  represents  his 
denomination  on  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Federal 
Council  of  Churches  of  Christ  in  America. 

He  approaches  his  subject,  therefore,  not  merely  as  an 
interested  observer  and  student  of  conditions  of  church  life 
in  America  to-day,  but  as  a leader  in  the  movement  to  har- 
monize differences  and  promote  unity  through  mutual  under- 
standing, sympathy,  and  co-operation.  His  book  is  a valu- 
able contribution  toward  solving  the  problem  and  furthering 
the  movement  which  it  treats. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2017  with  funding  from 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


https;//archive.org/details/unionofchristianOOashw_0 


PREFACE 


This  book  is  the  expression  of  the  writer’s  very  earnest 
conviction  that  for  the  present  no  progress  will  be  made  in 
the  direction  of  Christian  Unity  by  a discussion  of  denomina- 
tional differences,  but  that  the  need  of  the  hour  is  a fuller 
development  of  that  co-operation  in  practical  tasks  which  is 
already  possible  among  Christian  bodies,  despite  doctrinal 
or  other  disagreements.  Such  co-operation  will  promote 
mutual  acquaintance  and  esteem,  and  these  in  turn  will  evoke 
Christian  love;  and  if  love,  when  it  is  perfected,  cannot  draw 
Christians  together  into  the  unity  of  a single  Church,  it  is 
hopeless  to  expect  that  any  other  motive  whatsoever  will 
^suffice  to  do  it.  Thus  the  most  hopeful  program  for  the 
I present  is  co-operation  in  common  tasks;  then  federation:  to 
\be  followed,  if  it  be  God’s  will,  by  organic  unity.  The  proc- 
ess cannot  be  hurried,  neither  can  the  order  of  the  steps  in  it 
be  reversed.  This  is  the  era  of  federation.  Until  the  possi- 
bilities of  the  federafiw^pnnciple  are  thoroughly  tested,  and 
the  spirit  of  it  thoroughly  permeates  the  divided  bodies  of 
Christendom,  no  further  step  can  be  taken. 

'The  author  desires  to  express  his  very  hearty  appreciation 
of  the  assistance  rendered  by  his  friends,  the  Rev.  F.  W.  C. 
Meyer  and  Mr.  H.  C.  Henderson;  also  by  Rev.  James 
McConaughy,  Editor  of  Publications  of  the  American 
Sunday-School  Union,  after  the  acceptance  of  the  manu- 
script. Their  examination  of  it  led  to  many  helpful  sug- 
gestions. He  sends  forth  this  book  with  the  earnest  prayer 
that  it  may  make  some  slight  contribution  toward  the  con- 
summation of  that  unity  of  the  Church  for  which  the  Lord 
of  all  Christians  prayed. 


Robert  A.  Ashworth. 


:i  ;'■>  Ji 

ymip. 


< 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

I.  The  Expense  and  Waste  of  Christian  Dis- 
union  13 

II.  The  New  Testament  Ideal  of  Christian  Unity 

AND  What  Became  of  It 39 

III.  The  Passing  of  the  Sectarian  Spirit 61 

IV.  The  Growth  of  the  Spirit  of  Christian  Unity  81 

V.  Christian  Unity  Through  Federation 103 

VI.  The  Union  of  Christian  Forces  in  Country 

AND  Village 125 

VII.  Co-operation  in  Home  Missions 159 

VIII.  Co-operation  on  the  Foreign  Mission  Field.  185 

IX.  Organic  Church  Unity 213 

X.  The  Basis  of  Organic  Unity 239 


Neither  for  these  only  do  I pray,  but  for  them  also  that  believe 
on  me  through  their  word;  that  they  may  all  be  one;  even  as 
thou,  Father,  art  in  me,  and  I in  thee,  that  they  also  may  be  in  us: 
that  the  world  may  believe  that  thou  didst  send  me.  And  the 
glory  which  thou  hast  given  me  I have  given  unto  them;  that  they 
may  be  one,  even  cls  we  are  one;  I in  them,  and  thou  in  me, 
that  they  may  be  perfected  into  one;  that  the  world  may  know 
that  thou  didst  send  me,  and  lovedst  them,  even  as  thou  lovedst  me. 

—John  17:20-23,  R.  V. 


THE  EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF 
CHRISTIAN  DISUNION 


Protestantism  divided  and  subdivided. — ^The  multiplicity 
of  denominations. — Its  eflfect  in  loss  of  spiritual  fellowship. — 
An  equal  loss  in  efficiency. — Over-churching  and  its  effects  in 
waste  of  equipment  and  unnecessary  expense  of  maintenance. 
■ — The  inadequate  salaries  of  ministers. — Loss  in  prestige  and 
leadership. — A divided  Church  unable  to  render  the  service 
to  be  expected  from  it. 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN 
FORCES  IN  AMERICA 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  EXPENSE  AISTD  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION 

The  most  pressing  problem  of  the  Church  in  our 
day  is  that  of  Christian  Unity:  beside  it  all  others 
fade  into  insignificance.  The  energies  of  Christen- 
dom are  being  frittered  away  in  the  competitions, 
controversies,  jealousies,  and  friction  engendered  by 
its  “unhappy  divisions,”  and  this  in  the  face  of  such 
demands  upon  the  Church  and  such  opportunities 
for  service  as  have  never  been  presented  before  in 
its  history.  This  era,  that  might  be  the  most 
glorious  in  the  career  of  the  Church,  may  be  com- 
pelled to  record  the  story  of  its  degeneration  and 
defeat.  The  loss  of  influence  that  institutional 
Christianity  is  suffering  to-day  may  be  ascribed  to 
many  causes,  but  to  none  is  it  due  in  so  large  a 
measure  as  to  disunion.  The  most  difficult  situa- 
tions which  the  Church  is  called  upon  to  meet,  it 


14 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


has  itself  created:  its  worst  enemies  are  of  its  own 
household.  There  is  no  task  confronting  it  any- 
where in  the  world  which  the  Church  might  not 
accomplish  if  it  could  approach  that  task  with  a 
united  front;  and  there  is  none  to  which  it  is  fully 
equal  so  long  as  its  forces  are  divided  and  its  ener- 
gies dissipated. 

The  first  step  in  a constructive  program  for  the 
reunion  of  Christendom  is  the  frank  recognition  of 
the  lengths  to  which  the  multiplication  of  sects  has 
gone,  and  of  the  serious  evils  that  flow  therefrom. 
It  is  a futile  waste  of  time  to  try  to  fix  the  blame  for 
the  existing  situation.  “Protestantism,”  Dr.  James 
H.  Ecob  once  said,  “is  divided  and  subdivided 
until  it  cannot  count  its  own  disjecta  membra. 
This  condition  should  be  taken  upon  the  conscience 
and  heart  of  every  serious  man  and  woman  as  a 
burden  and  a shame.”  Another  has  declared  that 
the  divisions  of  Christendom  might  be  classified 
into  “sects  and  insects.”  But  whatever  truth 
there  may  be  in  such  statements,  sectarianism  will 
never  be  scolded  or  ridiculed  out  of  existence.  It 
was  not  mere  perversity  that  called  any  one  of  the 
denominations  into  being.  Every  denomination 
sincerely  believes  itself  to  have  a right  to  be  and  to 
propagate  its  principles,  even  though  to  it  every 
other  may  seem  to  be  without  excuse.  The  mistakes 
of  the  fathers  were  honestly  made;  and  if  we  have 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  15 


a wider  vision  than  they  and  are  ready  now  to  move 
out  of  the  “low-vaulted  past”  and  to  set  our  hands 
to  the  building  of  a loftier  temple,  little  is  to  be 
gained  by  stopping  to  rake  over  the  ashes  of  dead 
controversies  to  discover  how  the  foundations  of 
earlier  structures  were  laid.  We  may  be  quite 
willing  to  admit  that  the  sectarian  spirit  has  ren- 
dered valuable  service  to  the  cause  of  the  Kingdom 
in  the  past,  and  yet  be  thoroughly  convinced  that 
its  days  of  vigor  and  usefulness  are  gone  and  that 
it  is  ready  for  the  grave,  and  that  denominational- 
ism,  as  we  know  it,  must  be  radically  transformed 
if  it  is  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  present  day. 

Knowledge  of  religious  conditions  existing  in 
America  to-day  must  convince  even  the  firmest 
advocate  of  individualism  and  independence  in 
religion  that  they  have  exceeded  the  bounds  of 
liberty.  Those  who  desire  the  statistics  may  con- 
sult the  authoritative  work  of  Dr.  H.  K.  Carroll, 
The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United  States.^ 

“The  first  impression  one  gets  in  studying  the 
results  of  the  census,”  says  Dr.  Carroll,  “is  that  , 
there  is  an  infinite  variety  of  religions  in  the  United 
States.  There  are  churches  small  and  churches 
great,  churches  white  and  churches  black,  churches 
high  and  low,  orthodox  and  heterodox,  Christian 
and  pagan.  Catholic  and  Protestant,  Liberal  and 


> P.  xui  2. 


16 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Conservative,  Calvinistic  and  Arminian,  native 
and  foreign,  Trinitarian  and  Unitarian.  All  phases 
of  thought  are  represented  by  them,  all  possible 
theologies,  all  varieties  of  polity,  ritual,  usage, 
forms  of  worship.  . . . This  we  speak  of  as  ‘the 
land  of  the  free.’  No  man  has  a property  in  any 
other  man,  or  a right  to  dictate  his  religious  prin- 
ciples or  denominational  attachment.  No  church 
has  a claim  on  the  State,  and  the  State  has  no  claim 
on  any  church.  We  scarcely  appreciate  our  ad- 
vantages. Our  citizens  are  free  to  choose  a resi- 
dence in  any  one  of  50  states  and  territories,  and  to 
move  from  one  to  another  as  often  as  they  have  a 
mind  to.  There  is  even  a wider  range  for  choice 
and  change  in  religion.  One  may  be  a pagan,  a Jew, 
or  a Christian,  or  each  in  turn.  If  he  is  a pagan,  he 
may  worship  in  one  of  the  numerous  temples  de- 
voted to  Buddha;  if  a Jew,  he  may  be  of  the  Ortho- 
dox or  Reformed  variety;  if  a Christian,  he  may 
select  any  one  of  125  or  130  different  kinds,  or  join 
every  one  of  them  in  turn.  He  may  be  six  kinds 
of  an  Adventist,  seven  kinds  of  a Catholic,  twelve 
kinds  of  a Mennonite  or  Presbyterian,  thirteen 
kinds  of  a Baptist,  sixteen  kinds  of  a Lutheran,  or 
seventeen  kinds  of  a Methodist.  He  may  be  a 
member  of  any  one  of  143  denominations,  or  of  all 
in  succession.  If  none  of  these  suits  him,  he  still 
has  a choice  among  150  separate  and  independent 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  17 

congregations,  M^hich  have  no  denominational  name, 
creed,  or  connection.” 

It  affords  a degree  of  comfort,  however,  to  be 
assured  that  these  rainbow-hued  varieties  of  Chris- 
tian practice  may  be  reduced  by  a process  of  syn- 
thesis to  a more  manageable  number.  “A  closer 
scrutiny  of  the  list  shows  that  many  of  these  143 
denominations  differ  only  in  name.  Without  a 
single  change  in  doctrine  or  polity,  the  18  Methodist 
bodies  could  be  reduced  to  three  or  four;  the  12 
Presbyterian  to  three;  the  12  Mennonite  to  two; 
and  so  on.  The  differences  in  many  cases  are  only 
sectional  or  historical.  The  slavery  question  was 
the  cause  of  not  a few  divisions,  and  matters  of 
discipline  were  responsible  for  a larger  number. 
Arranging  the  denominations  in  groups  or  families, 
and  counting  as  one  family  each  of  the  12  Mennon- 
ite, the  17  Methodist,  the  13  Baptist  bodies,  and 
so  on,  we  have,  instead  of  143,  only  42  titles.  In 
other  words,  if  there  could  be  a consolidation  of 
each  denominational  group,  the  reproach  of  our 
division  would  be  largely  taken  away.”^ 

That  the  splintering  process  from  which  the  cause 
of  religion  has  suffered  has  not  altogether  ceased  is 
indicated  in  the  bulletin  of  the  Department  of  Com- 
merce and  Labor  of  figures  gathered  in  1906,  which 
reports  that  during  the  sixteen  years  subsequent  to 

^ Dr.  H.  K.  Carroll,  The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United  States,  p.  xv. 

2 


18 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


the  census  of  1890,  41  new  divisions  were  added  to 
the  unhappy  list.  There  is,  however,  here  also  a 
gleam  of  comfort  in  that  many  of  these  are  not 
Christian,  and  others  can  hardly  be  called  churches, 
so  small  are  they  and  insignificant. 

The  facts,  however  interpreted,  are  serious 
enough.  There  is  no  single  characteristic  of  organ- 
ized Christianity  which  has  not  served  as  a cause  of 
division.  In  polity  the  churches  are  known  as  con- 
gregational, presbyterial,  and  episcopal.  The  ques- 
tion of  ministerial  orders  has  been  a fruitful  cause 
of  division.  The  Roman  Catholic  Church  admits 
the  validity  of  the  orders  of  the  Greek  Orthodox 
Church,  but  there  is  no  fellowship  between  them. 
The  Roman  Catholic  and  Greek  Orthodox  Churches 
unite  in  denying  validity  to  the  orders  of  the  Angli- 
can and  Protestant  Episcopal  Churches,  while  the 
latter  refuse  to  recognize  the  orders  of  any 
churches  except  those  that  refuse  to  recognize  theirs. 
Churches  divide  on  the  observance  of  ritual  and  on 
the  manner  of  observance  and  significance  of  the 
ordinances.  It  is  among  the  ironies  of  history  that 
the  ordinance  of  the  Supper  of  our  Lord,  wherein 
it  was  intended  that  disciples  should  manifest  their 
unity  about  a common  table,  has  been  a principal 
occasion  and  cause  of  division. 

Should  other  sources  of  disagreement  fail,  there 
remain  dogma  and  creed  which  may  safely  be  de- 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  19 


pended  upon  to  keep  the  followers  of  Jesus  apart. 
It  would  be  instructive  to  count  the  separate  doc- 
trines that  are  to  be  found  in  the  creeds  of  Chris- 
tendom, and  to  point  out  the  manner  in  which  the 
simple  truths  of  the  apostolic  Church  have  taken  on 
complexity  with  the  years,  and  to  note  how,  with 
every  advance  in  the  intricacy  of  belief,  there  has 
been  a further  scattering  of  believers.  A few  years 
ago  there  appeared  a dispatch  from  Peru,  announc- 
ing that  the  traditional  treasure  of  the  Incas,  a 
sum  of  vast  amount,  had  been  discovered  at  Challa- 
catta.  The  item  concluded  with  the  statement, 
“The  discoverers  are  now  quarreling  over  the 
treasure.”  Thus  has  the  company  of  the  disciples 
of  our  Lord  been  prevented  from  applying  the  wealth 
of  the  gospel  to  the  needs  of  man  by  their  disputes 
over  its  possession  and  administration. 

For  the  disunion  that  has  characterized  the  his- 
tory of  Protestantism  we  are  paying  the  penalty, — 
a penalty  so  severe  that  it  threatens  to  bankrupt 
the  resources  of  the  Church.  As  a consequence 
of  such  disunion,  organized  Christianity  has  suf- 
fered irreparably,  in  the  first  place,  from  the  loss  of 
spiritual  felloivship.  There  is  much  that  the 
churches  could  learn  from  one  another  if  they 
would.  Every  great  denomination  that  has  given 
proof  of  its  endurance,  and  that  has  gathered  into 
its  fold  large  numbers  of  people,  must  have  its  pecu- 


20 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


liar  virtues.  If  it  has  been  able  to  minister  to  the 
spiritual  needs  of  the  multitude  of  its  adherents,  it 
must  possess  spiritual  vitality  and  at  least  a modicum 
of  spiritual  truth.  One  does  not  gather  figs  of 
thistles.  It  is  impossible  to  believe  that  God  could 
so  largely  use  any  body  of  believers  as  he  has  used 
each  of  the  several  churches  that  make  up  the  bulk 
of  Christendom  if  it  were  devoid  of  any  essential 
element  of  divine  truth.  Yet  there  is  no  church 
among  them  all  but  has  its  failings,  none  without 
its  alloy  of  error,  not  one  but  that  is  impeded  by  a 
partial  view  of  truth.  Where  one  is  strong,  another 
is  weak;  where  one  fails,  another  succeeds. 

It  has  been  often  said  that  denominational  differ- 
ences are  temperamental,  and  that  the  various 
Christian  bodies  appeal  to  various  tj'pes  of  men, 
their  members  being  drawn  to  one  another  by  a 
“consciousness  of  kind.”  If  this  be  true  in  any 
degree,  what  is  it  but  a confession  of  the  partiality 
and  bias  of  every  such  communion,  and  of  the  ina- 
bility of  any  one  of  them  to  appeal  to  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men?  But  if  that  be  true,  does  it 
not  prove  that  no  existing  church  reflects  the  full- 
orbed  Christ,  but  only  a fraction  of  his  refulgence? 
Christ  is  “divided”  among  them.  There  is  no  church 
that  sees  more  than  a single  facet  of  the  jewel,  not 
one  but  that  is  blind  to  the  full  glory  of  the  revela- 
tion. For  Christ  himself  appeals  to  every  tern- 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  21 


perament  and  to  the  entire  man,  and  the  richer  the 
man’s  personality,  the  more  complete  his  develop- 
ment, the  more  rounded  his  character,  the  stronger 
the  appeal.  And  if  the  appeal  of  the  Church  to  the 
world  is  to  be  a universal  appeal,  attracting  every 
t;y’pe  of  man  and  revealing  the  complete  Christ  to 
the  entire  man,  the  fractional  revelations  of  partic- 
ular churches  must  be  united.  No  one  can  fully 
understand  Christ  except  in  the  fellowship  of  all 
kinds  of  believers.  They  who  approach  him  from 
varied  angles  must  bring  their  contributions  to  the 
common  store,  if  the  Church’s  conception  of  the 
Christ  is  to  be  rich  enough  and  full  enough  to  win 
the  world.  Some  see  the  breadth,  and  some  the 
length,  and  others  the  depth,  and  still  others  the 
height;  but  if  the  Christian  is  ever  to  “be  able  to 
comprehend  what  is  the  breadth  and  length  and 
depth  and  height,  and  to  know  the  love  of  Christ, 
which  passeth  knowledge,”  and  thus  “be  filled  with 
all  the  fulness  of  God,”  it  must  be  “with  all  the 
saints.”  No  man  or  church,  in  our  divided  state, 
is  large  enough  to  comprehend  this  alone,  and  that 
is  why  our  views  are  still  prejudiced  and  partial 
and  devoid  of  compelling  power.  If  we  are  to  un- 
derstand the  Christ,  we  must  come  to  him  together. 
Paul  desired  to  visit  the  brethren  in  Rome  that  he 
might  impart  unto  them  “some  spiritual  gift”; — 
that  is,  that  he  might  share  with  them  the  product 


22 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  an  experience  of  the  Christ  that  they  did  not 
possess; — but  he  desired  also  to  gain  from  them,  for 
the  strengthening  and  broadening  of  his  own  spirit- 
ual life,  that  which  they  had  gained  from  another 
angle, — “that  I with  you  may  be  comforted  in  you, 
each  of  us  by  the  other’s  faith,  both  yours  and 
mine.” 

The  separate  companies  of  the  disciples  of  the 
Lord,  therefore,  have  suffered  irreparable  damage 
through  their  long  estrangement,  in  being  deprived 
of  that  mutual  enlargement  that  springs  from  spirit- 
ual fellowship.  We  are  shut  off  from  one  another 
by  denominational  fences  sometimes  so  high  that 
we  cannot  see  over  them.  Here  are  churches  that 
lack  the  historic  sense.  They  are  but  of  yesterday, 
and  have  never  experienced  the  charm  or  felt  the 
conserving  influence  of  Christian  tradition;  but 
they  are  moving  vigorously  forward  with  power 
under  the  influence  of  a mighty  passion  for  the  liv- 
ing Christ.  Here,  on  the  other  hand,  are  churches 
adorned  with  the  gifts  of  the  centuries.  They  are 
like  vases  set  in  some  cathedral  at  Easter  time  into 
which  the  worshipers,  as  they  pass,  drop  rich  gar- 
ments and  jewels.  But  they  are  burdened  by  the 
very  wealth  of  their  heritage,  and  the  dignity  of  their 
ritual  hampers  the  spirit.  They  lack  freedom  and 
spontaneity.  Here  are  churches  strong  in  doctrine: 
out  of  them  have  come  the  great  theologians  and 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  23 


teachers  of  Christendom.  Here  are  others  with  a 
more  popular  and  democratic  appeal,  who  know 
better  how  to  gain  and  keep  the  ear  of  the  common 
people.  Cannot  the  denominations  learn  from  one 
another  and  share  their  gifts?  The  weakness  of 
the  witness  of  the  Church  lies  in  its  disunion.  Only 
a united  Church  can  understand  or  reveal  the  Lord 
of  the  Church.  It  takes  all  the  seven  colors  of  the 
spectrum  to  make  the  sunlight:  the  sun  cannot 
express  itself  through  a single  color.  Nor  can  the 
Christ  express  himself  through  a broken  fragment 
of  his  body,  the  Church:  therefore  he  prayed, 
“That  they  may  all  be  one,  as  thou.  Father,  art 
in  me,  and  I in  thee;  that  the  world  may  believe 
that  thou  didst  send  me.” 

In  a little  book  entitled  In  Praise  of  Legend, 
there  is  told  the  story  of  “ a people  living  in  a world 
which  is  divided  into  three  countries,  Cerulia, 
Rubia,  and  Flavia.  Parsee-like,  they  worship 
the  Sun.  None  could  see  the  Sun  itself,  but  each 
worshiped  through  the  peculiar  color  seen  as 
through  a prism  by  each — blue,  red,  or  yellow. 
Each  believed  his  own  color  to  be  the  only  color  of 
the  Deity: 

‘Cerulians  see  all  things  blue; 

Through  red  the  Rubians  all  view; 

While  Flavians  indeed  declare 
There’s  naught  but  yellow  in  the  air.’ 


24 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Each  country  holds  that  none  can  approach  the 
Sun — 

'Except  along  the  path  of  light 
Which  each  declares  alone  is  right.’ 

And  so  each  despises  the  other.  ...  So  they  live 
their  lives,  each  tenacious  of  his  ovui  creed,  and  all 
full  of  contempt  for  those  who  differ  from  them. 
At  length  one  day  a sage  appears  among  them  and 
tries  to  put  them  right.  He  tells  them: 

‘The  Light 

Which  after  death  wiU  meet  their  sight, 

Will  not  be  yellow,  blue,  or  red. 

But  white  and  glorious  instead, 

A pure  and  everlasting  blaze 
Of  beautiful,  love-blended  rays.’ 

The  lesson  is,”  the  author  continues,  “that  Truth  is 
only  seen  through  prisms  by  the  unit.  Not  until 
each  sees  the  truth  as  seen  by  the  whole  will  each 
grasp  the  fact  that  his  own  color  is  only  one  hue  in  it, 
and  must  blend  with  the  other  colors  before  it  can 
be  called  the  Truth.  Each  has  his  own  quota  to 
contribute  and  each  will  see  more  as  he  tries  to  see 
through  the  eyes  of  all.  It  is  only  the  whole 
Church  that  can  see  the  whole  Truth.” 

Upon  the  administrative  side  of  its  activity  also  the 
Church  has  suffered  a disastrous  loss  of  efficiency 
through  its  divisions.  This  is  evident  in  many 
quarters  in  the  prevalence,  to  use  an  odious  but 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  25 


seemingly  indispensable  term,  of  “over-churching.” 
There  will  be  differences  of  opinion  as  to  the  degree 
of  its  prevalence,  and  as  to  the  point  at  which  it 
makes  its  appearance,  but  no  disagreement  as  to  its 
existence. 

From  a study  of  the  statistics  of  1910,  as  given  by 
Dr.  Carroll,  of  the  following  larger  divisions  of 
Protestants  within  the  United  States,  Baptists 
(Regular,  North  and  South,  and  Free),  Congre- 
gationalists.  Disciples,  Methodists  (North  and 
South),  Presbyterians  (North  and  South),  and 
Protestant  Episcopalians,  it  appears  that  in  these 
bodies  are  13,385,600  communicants,  with  76,783 
ministers  and  116,012  edifices.  From  the  statis- 
tics of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  of  the  same  date 
it  appears  that  for  12,425,947  communicants  there 
are  17,084  priests  and  13,461  churches.  Thus 
for  the  Protestant  denominations  mentioned  there 
was  a church  building  to  every  115  communicants, 
and  a minister  to  every  173  communicants,  while 
for  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  there  was  a church 
building  for  every  923  communicants,  and  one  priest, 
on  the  average,  for  727  communicants.  If  we 
deduct  20  per  cent,  from  the  number  of  Protestant 
ministers,  and  10  per  cent,  from  the  number  of 
Roman  Catholic  priests,  which  have  been  suggested 
on  plausible  grounds  as  the  proper  percentages^ 

* Rev.  F.  Marion  Simme,  What  Must  the  Church  Do  to  he  Saved?  p.  77  ff. 


26  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

to  include  those  who  are  superannuated,  engaged 
in  secretarial  work,  or  as  foreign  missionaries,  it 
would  provide  a Protestant  minister  to  every  218 
communicants,  and  a Roman  Catholic  priest  to 
every  809  communicants.  On  the  basis  of  the 
figures  for  all  denominations  for  1906,  which  is  the 
latest  date  for  which  complete  statistics  are  avail- 
able, the  Rev.  F.  Marion  Simms  asserts  that  we 
had,  at  that  date,  “one  active  Protestant  pastor  in 
the  United  States  for  every  173  Protestant  church 
members,  which  is  one  for  every  597  non-Catholic 
population;”  while,  “on  the  average,  each  priest 
in  the  United  States  in  1906  cared  for  1,040  souls.”^ 
The  Rev.  E.  Tallmadge  Root,  on  the  basis  of  the 
1906  census,  declares  that  “for  the  United  States, 
Protestants  provide  53,282,445  sittings  for  20,287,742 
communicants:  so  that  if  the  maximum  attendance 
equals  the  membership,  which  is  not  probable,  they 
have  two  and  one-half  times  as  many  sittings  as 
are  ever  used;  while  the  Catholics  provide  only 
4,494,377  sittings  for  12,079,142  communicants, 
almost  exactly  reversing  the  ratio  of  sittings  and 
communicants.”  After  all  allowances  are  made  for 
differences  in  the  modes  and  conceptions  of  worship 
which  distinguish  Catholics  from  Protestants,  and 
which  permit  the  former  to  care  for  a larger  number 
of  worshipers  in  a single  building  than  is  possible  to 


■ Rev.  F.  Marion  Simms,  What  Must  the  Church  Do  to  be  Saved? 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  27 

the  latter,  there  is  still  reason  to  ask,  with  Mr.  Root, 
whether  it  would  not  seem  that  Protestants  are 
bearing  a far  larger  burden  in  the  maintenance  of 
church  equipment  than  should  be  necessary.  Says 
the  Rev.  E.  T.  Tomlinson,  “A  careful  study  of  the 
data  presented  (for  the  United  States)  shows  that 
there  are  192,795  church  edifices  (Protestant)  with 
an  average  of  157  members  per  organization,  and 
that  the  debt  of  the  average  body  is  nearly  50  per 
cent,  of  the  value  of  the  church  property.  This 
implies  a heavy  tax  on  the  membership  even  before 
its  legitimate  work  is  begun.  With  a membership 
of  157,  it  is  estimated  that  at  least  two-thirds  of  the 
membership  are  women.  This  leaves  52  male  mem- 
bers, of  whom  doubtless  a large  proportion  are  boys 
too  young  to  be  of  much  financial  assistance.  If 
only  one-third  is  deducted  for  non-resident  mem- 
bers, there  are  left  approximately  20  to  30  men 
upon  whom  must  fall  the  chief  burden  of  support 
of  the  ‘ average  ’ church.  What  such  a tax  would  be 
if  raised  for  other  than  church  purposes  is  ap- 
parent.An  experienced  Christian  worker  has 
stated  it  to  be  his  opinion  that  any  community  can 
support  a church  to  every  500  of  the  population; 
but  the  question  at  issue  is  not  how  small  a number 
of  people  may  conceivably  maintain  a church,  but 

* Rev.  E.  T.  Tomlinson,  Ph.  D.,  “Too  Many  Churches,”  in  The  World’s 
Work,  August,  1913. 


28 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


how  large  a population  may  be  efficiently  served  by 
a single  church  and  a single  minister. 

The  penalty  of  the  crowding  of  churches  into  one 
community  is  commonly  the  neglect  of  other  and 
neighboring  communities.  During  the  last  two  or 
three  years  the  Board  of  Home  Missions  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  (North),  under  the  direction 
of  its  Department  of  Church  and  Country  Life, 
has  made  extensive  surveys  of  various  parts  of  the 
country,  from  which  interesting  information  as  to 
the  relation  of  the  number  of  churches  to  the  popula- 
tion may  be  gleaned.  In  Illinois  the  44  communi- 
ties investigated,  which  included  rural  districts  and 
towns  up  to  a population  of  3,000  and  a total  popula- 
tion of  114,975,  contained  225  churches,  in  which  20 
different  denominations  were  represented, — an 
average  of  five  churches  to  the  community.  Only 
77  of  these  churches  had  grown  in  ten  years.  Forty- 
seven  churches,  abandoned  during  that  period,  were 
still  standing,  while  many  others  had  been  torn 
down.  Only  19  per  cent,  of  the  population  at- 
tended church  regularly  and  50  per  cent,  of  the 
Protestant  membership  did  not  attend.  There  was 
one  church  to  every  511  of  the  population,  with  an 
average  attendance  of  93.  Meanwhile,  there  were 
30  rural  communities  without  a church  within  a 
radius  of  five  miles,  leaving  48  per  cent,  of  the  popula- 
tion absolutely  untouched  by  the  Church.  In  Penn- 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  29 


sylvania  53  communities,  with  a population  of 
124,203,  were  studied,  within  which  were  348 
churches,  or  one  to  every  357  people.  Forty-two 
per  cent,  of  the  population  were  church  members, 
of  whom  69  per  cent,  attended  regularly,  the  church- 
goers constituting  29  per  cent,  of  the  population. 
Fifty  per  cent,  of  the  churches  were  growing,  26  per 
cent,  standing  still,  and  24  per  cent,  declining. 
Five  communities  were  without  a church  within  a 
radius  of  five  miles.  In  Missouri  there  were  found 
in  23  villages,  averaging  240  in  population,  56 
churches,  or  one  to  every  100  people.  Four  vil- 
lages had  four  churches  each,  and  two  of  these 
villages  had  less  than  225  inhabitants  each.  The 
surveys  in  Ohio  and  Indiana  give  results  of  a similar 
character. 


Note. — Dr.  Tomlinson,  in  the  article  quoted  above,  gives  the  following 
statistics  for  Vermont; 

Number  of 


Population. 

Churches. 

Bennington 

6,000  ■ 

6 

Brandon 

2,000 

5 

Castleton 

1,000 

4 

Center  Rutland 

200 

1 

East  Hubbardton 

470 

2 

East  Poultney 

300 

2 

Fair  Haven 

3,500 

8 

Fowler 

200 

1 

Hydeville 

150 

2 

Ira 

600 

1 

Manchester 

2,200 

5 

Mendon 

200 

2 

Middletown  Springs 

150 

1 

North  Bennington 

800 

3 

Pittsford 

5 

30 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Number  of 
Population.  Churches. 


Poultney 2,500  5 

Pownal 150  2 

Proctor 1,200  3 

Rutland 13,500  14 

Shaftesbury 500  3 

Wallingford 700  3 

West  Haven 300  2 

West  Pawlet 500  3 

West  Rutland 4,500  11 


This  is  an  average  of  a church  to  about  447  people.  One  county  in 
the  state  of  Massachusetts  contains  a church  for  every  295  inhabitants. 
In  Webster  County,  Kentucky,  are  68  Protestant  churches,  one  to  every 
308  of  the  population,  with  an  average  membership  of  less  than  90. 

Conditions  such  as  these,  examples  of  which 
might  be  furnished  almost  indefinitely  from  every 
section  of  the  country,  effectually  dispose  of  the 
question  whether  over-churching  exists.  If  further 
illustrations  are  desired,  they  may  be  obtained  in  the 
results  of  the  intensive  studies  of  Tompkins  county, 
New  York,  and  Windsor  county,  Vermont,  by  C.  O. 
Gill  and  Gifford  Pinchot,  published  in  a volume 
entitled  The  Country  Church.  These  studies  tell 
the  same  story  of  the  reduplication  of  churches,  with 
the  heavy  burden  of  expense  and  loss  of  efficiency 
and  the  decreasing  membership  and  attendance 
that  go  with  it.  Nor  are  these  conditions  confined 
to  village  and  country  communities.  The  cities 
suffer  from  them  also,  as  many  authorities  agree. 

The  present  generation  is  not  so  largely  to  blame 
for  the  disabilities  under  which  it  labors  as  are 
generations  past,  that,  in  a day  when  denomina- 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  31 


tional  feeling  ran  higher  than  now,  felt  driven  to 
further  their  sectarian  propaganda  by  the  founding 
of  churches  wherever  they  could  secure  a foothold. 
But  in  very  many  communities  the  sour  grapes  of  the 
fathers  have  set  the  children’s  teeth  on  edge.  The 
children  wrestle  with  problems  which  they  should 
never  have  been  called  upon  to  face.  In  addition 
to  the  natural  and  inevitable  diflficulties  of  Christian 
work,  especially  in  small  communities,  they  must 
struggle  with  artificial  hindrances  set  for  them  by 
the  unwise  zeal  of  their  predecessors. 

The  consequence  of  the  unbearable  expense  of 
maintenance,  where  churches  are  multiplied  beyond 
the  ability  of  communities  adequately  to  sustain 
them,  falls  most  heavily  upon  the  ministry  in  the 
inadequacy  of  salaries.  It  is  unfair  to  the  many 
noble  men  who  labor  in  such  communities,  in  many 
instances  with  a rare  degree  of  self-sacrifice,  to  re- 
quire them  to  expend  their  energies  under  the  dis- 
couragement that  comes  from  the  suspicion  or  cer- 
tainty that,  because  of  the  multiplication  of  churches, 
their  efforts  are  not  needed.  But  when  such  men, 
many  of  them  with  a training  that  has  cost  much  in 
money  and  in  time,  are  asked  to  toil  for  the  wage 
of  unskilled  labor,  it  becomes  a crime  against  the 
spirit  of  religion. 

The  average  salary  of  ministers  of  all  denomina- 
tions in  the  United  States  was  stated  by  the  census 


32 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


report  of  1906,  the  latest  figures  available,  to  be 
$663,  or  an  average  of  $12.75  per  week;  and  the  aver- 
age for  all  denominations  in  communities  outside 
the  principal  cities  was  reported  to  be  $573,  or  $11.02 
per  week.  Though  the  minister  must  be  thoroughly 
and  expensively  trained,  and  is  put  to  great  expense 
to  maintain  his  efficiency,  his  average  wage  is  thus 
seen  to  be  far  below  the  level  of  the  average  paid  to 
the  mechanic.  Taking  for  comparison  the  figures 
for  the  same  year  presented  by  the  Bureau  of  Labor 
we  find  the  following  to  have  been  the  average  wages 
paid  at  that  date  in  the  occupations  named:  brick- 
layers, $29.05  per  week;  carpenters,  $15.46;  plas- 
terers, $27.82;  glass-blowers  (window  glass),  $38.29; 
compositors,  $18.87;  and  cigar-makers,  $17.42.^ 

1 Bulletin  of  the  Bureau  of  Labor,  No.  71,  1907. 

The  following  are  the  figures  from  the  census  of  1906  that  indicate 
the  actual  average  salaries  paid  by  the  principal  Protestant  denomina- 
tions in  the  United  States  in  communities  of  less  than  25,000  population: 


Southern  Baptist  Convention S334 

Disciples  or  Christians 526 

United  Brethren 547 

Methodist  Episcopal  (South) 681 

Northern  Baptist  Convention 683 

Methodist  Episcopal  (North) 741 

Lutheran 744 

Presbyterian  Church  in  the  U.  S.  (South) 857 

Congrega  tional 880 

Reformed  Church  in  America 923 

Presbyterian  Church  in  the  U.  S.  A.  (North) 977 

Universalists 987 

Protestant  Episcopal 994 


These  figures  should  be  interpreted  in  terms  of  the  cost  of  living,  which 
varies  in  different  sections  of  the  country. 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  33 

It  seems  probable,  further,  that  the  salaries  of 
ministers,  especially  in  rural  communities,  are  grow- 
ing smaller  rather  than  larger.  In  the  study  of 
Windsor  and  Tompkins  counties,  already  referred 
to,  the  authors  say,  “The  churches  of  both  counties 
are  giving  less  and  less  pay  to  their  ministers. 
Reckoned  in  dollars,  there  was  an  increase  of  16  per 
cent,  in  Windsor  county,  while  in  Tompkins  county 
the  increase  was  less  than  one  per  cent.  Reckoned 
in  purchasing  power,  less  real  pay  was  given  in  each 
county  during  the  second  period  than  in  the  first 
(r.  e.,  twenty  years  earlier).  The  amount  of  real 
pay  declined  seven  per  cent,  in  Windsor  county  and 
nearly  16  per  cent,  in  Tompkins  county. 

Such  salaries  where  they  are  insuflBcient  to  sustain 
their  recipients  at  even  a low  degree  of  efficiency 
must  be  eked  out  with  aid  from  state  and  national 
missionary  boards,  a large  fraction  of  whose  funds 
must  go  to  the  support  of  churches  engaged  in  com- 
petitive and  often  superfluous  activity.  Mean- 
while great  districts  within  the  United  States  are 
without  a church  or  religious  privileges  of  any  kind, 
and  while  the  religious  interests  of  many  communi- 
ties in  the  home  land  are  actually  depressed  by  a 
surplus  of  churches  and  ministers,  the  forces  at 
work  upon  the  foreign  field  cry  for  reinforcements. 

These  evils  of  over-churching,  and  consequent 


3 


' Loco,  cit.t  p.  14. 


34 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


loss  of  spiritual  fellowship  between  the  various 
bodies  of  Christians  who  are  forced  into  competition 
with  one  another,  together  with  this  waste  of  equip- 
ment and  unnecessary  expense  of  church  mainte- 
nance, and  handicapping  of  ministers  through  the 
payment  of  inadequate  salaries,  are  a part  of  the 
price  that  Protestantism  is  paying  for  the  luxury  of 
its  divisions.  But  these  do  not  constitute  the  entire 
cost.  There  results  from  the  disunion  of  Protest- 
antism an  incalculable  loss  in  national  and  local 
prestige  and  leadership. 

The  usefulness  of  the  Church  in  the  local  com- 
munity is  sadly  impaired  by  this  division  of  its  forces. 
There  is  no  argument  for  Christianity  like  the  unity 
of  Christians.  When  the  voices  of  all  the  churches 
blend  in  a single  message  there  is  weight  and  power 
behind  it.  Competition  between  churches  that 
claim  to  be  servants  of  the  same  Master  seems  to  the 
world  so  incongruous  with  the  spirit  of  that  Master 
as  to  impair  the  credentials  of  the  institution  that 
professes  to  represent  him. 

In  its  divided  state  the  Church  is  unable  to  render 
to  the  nation  the  service  which  is  rightfully  expected 
of  it.  The  State  has  relieved  the  Church  of  the 
burdens  of  taxation  and  accorded  to  it  a place  of 
special  privilege  with  the  expectation  of  certain 
services  in  return.  The  Church  ought  to  be  the  in- 
carnate conscience  of  the  State.  In  the  midst  of 


EXPENSE  AND  WASTE  OF  CHRISTIAN  DISUNION  35 


the  starving,  hurried,  restless  populace,  bent  upon 
gain  and  power,  it  stands  with  spire  pointing  to  the 
skies,  a perpetual  witness  to  truths  whose  values  are 
eternal.  It  is  the  task  of  the  Church  to  spiritualize 
the  ideals  of  democracy;  but  from  its  often  dis- 
cordant and  always  divided  witness  what  unity  of 
impression  upon  the  national  life  is  possible?  In 
the  danger  of  a loss  of  influence  that  shall  be  com- 
plete and  final  the  perils  of  disunion  reach  their  cul- 
mination. All  systematic  religious  education  has 
been  crowded  out  of  the  public  schools,  to  their  im- 
measurable loss  and  peril,  largely  because  the 
churches  cannot  agree  upon  what  teaching  shall  be 
furnished.  The  Church  is  losing  its  authority  over 
family  life.  An  increasing  proportion  of  marriage 
ceremonies  are  performed  by  officers  of  the  State 
without  the  sanction  of  religion,  and  the  percentage 
of  divorces  advances  rapidly.  Large  areas  of  thought 
have  been  permitted  to  pass  beyond  the  controlling 
inffuence  of  the  Church,  and  an  increasing  percentage 
of  religious  feeling  and  activity  is  to  be  found  out- 
side of,  and  out  of  relation  to  it.  Thus  irreligion 
feeds  upon  the  follies  of  the  representatives  of 
religion.  The  organized  efforts  for  human  better- 
ment, whose  passion  has  stirred  our  legislatures  and 
courts  of  justice  and  commercial  institutions,  this 
new  “enthusiasm  of  humanity”  that  has  come  upon 
the  world  in  our  day,  is  not  led  by  the  Church.  Too 


36 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


often  the  Church  is  found  near  the  rear  of  the 
procession,  swept  into  it  by  the  suction  of  the 
mighty  movement  as  the  army  of  progress  marches 
by.  Why  does  not  the  Church  lead?  Because  it 
is  paralyzed  by  its  divisions,  like  a body  in  which  a 
nerve  is.  cut,  so  that  the  members  have  lost  their 
connection  with  each  other  and  with  the  organizing 
brain,  and  cannot  move  together.  There  is  danger 
that  the  Church  will  lose  not  only  the  place  of 
leadership,  but  the  capacity  for  it  as  well,  unless  it 
shall  learn  again,  like  the  church  at  Philippi,  how  to 
“stand  fast  in  one  spirit,  with  one  mind,  striving 
together  for  the  faith  of  the  gospel.” 


THE  NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF 
CHRISTIAN  UNITY  AND 
WHAT  BECAME  OF  IT 


The  unity  taught  by  Christ — a unity  of  spirit;  a moral 
unity;  a vital  unity. — ^Unity  of  the  apostolic  churches. — 
Teaching  of  Paul  upon  the  subject.— Unity  by  coercion  in  the 
Roman  Church. — Effect  of  the  Reformation. — Present  condi- 
tions and  agencies  in  America  conducive  to  Christian  unity. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY 
AND  WHAT  BECAME  OF  IT 

It  is  among  the  most  hopeful  signs  of  our  times 
that  Christians  within  every  communion  are  com- 
ing to  realize  how  serious  and  wicked  a thing  it  is 
that  the  moral  force  of  the  churches  should  be  di- 
verted to  the  little  issues  that  divide  them,  when  it 
is  so  greatly  needed  for  the  advancement  of  the 
kingdom  of  God.  The  sin  of  its  divisions,  the  folly 
and  peril  of  its  wasteful  rivalries,  lie  heavy  upon 
the  mind  and  conscience  of  the  Church.  Now,  as 
the  smoke  of  ancient  controversies  is  clearing  away, 
Christians  of  every  name  are  turning  to  each  other 
with  a wistful  desire  for  a closer  fellowship;  and, 
hedged  about  though  they  are  by  the  theologies, 
institutions,  and  ceremonials  witli  which  each  com- 
munion has  surrounded  itself  during  its  years  of 
isolation,  hand  seeks  hand  across  the  barriers,  and 
heart  is  touching  heart.  Among  all  the  differences 
that  have  kept  them  apart,  Christ’s  followers  have 
never  quite  forgotten  his  prayer  that  they  might 
be  one,  and  by  the  memory  of  it  they  have  been 
rebuked  even  while  they  disputed.  Now  the  de- 

39 


40 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


sire  of  Jesus  is  finding  a new  response  in  the  hearts 
of  his  disciples,  and  earnestly  they  are  seeking  the 
means  by  which  the  ideal  of  their  Master  may  be 
realized.  Christendom  is  turning  to  its  divine 
Leader  to  learn  of  him  the  things  that  make  for  the 
peace  of  the  Church;  and,  the  world  around,  the 
disciples  of  Jesus,  with  a seriousness  and  a degree 
of  unanimity  that  herald  a new  day,  are  giving 
themselves  to  a fresh  study  of  the  mind  of  their 
Lord. 

Jesus  dealt  in  principles,  not  programs;  in  ideals, 
not  institutions.  We  shall  be  disappointed  if  we 
approach  the  teachings  of  Jesus  with  the  hope  of 
finding  there  a specific  plan  for  the  attainment  of 
the  unity  of  the  Church.  It  is  impossible  to  quote 
him  in  support  of  any  one  of  the  forms  in  which  the 
spirit  of  Christian  unity  is  expressing  itself  in  our 
day.  He  has  nothing  to  say  of  comity  or  co-opera- 
tion, of  federation  or  organic  unity.  Jesus  pro- 
pounded no  programs  for  the  solution  of  the  prob- 
lems of  even  his  own  generation.  But  while  he 
exhibited  an  indifference  to  the  form  of  things, 
which  sometimes  is  sorely  puzzling  to  the  practical 
Western  mind  with  its  faith  in  organization  and  legis- 
lation, he  was  profoundly  concerned  with  the  con- 
tent and  the  spirit.  When  Jesus  prayed  for  his 
disciples  that  they  might  be  one,  he  was  thinking, 
not  of  organic  Church  union,  nor  of  any  formal 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  41 


unity  expressed  in  organization,  but  of  a vital  unity 
springing  from  the  possession  of  a common  spirit 
and  a common  purpose.  He  was  not  thinking  of 
the  Church,  nor  of  sacraments,  nor  of  ecclesiastical 
polities,  nor  of  creeds.  Jesus  never  taught  a system 
of  theology,  nor  ordained  a priesthood,  or  even  an 
official  ministry,  nor  organized  a church.  Thejiur-  ^ 
pose  of  Jesus  was  to  propagate  a spirit,  not  to  estab-  • 
lish  an  institution.  He  seems  to  have  been  willing 
that  the  form  should  shape  itself  so  long  as  the  con- 
tent and  purpose  were  good.  He  spoke  of  “one 
flock,”  not  of  “one  fold,”^  with  the  ecclesiastical 
associations  that  such  a term  suggests — “they  shall 
become  one  flock,  one  shepherd.”  He  prayed  that 
they  who  believed  on  him  might  be  one,  leaving  it 
to  the  spirit  of  love,  without  which  no  mode  of 
unity  is  possible,  to  determine  what  form  would 
manifest  it  best. 

That  it  was  a unity  of  spirit  and  not  of  organiza- 
tion of  which  Jesus  was  thinking  is  evident  in  the 
terms  in  which  he  speaks  of  it.  He  desired  such  a 
oneness  among  the  disciples  as  he  himself  enjoyed 
with  God  the  Father — “that  they  may  all  be  one; 
even  as  thou.  Father,  art  in  me,  and  I in  thee,” 
The  profound  simplicity  of  his  habit  of  thought  for- 
bids us  to  suppose  that  Jesus  was  speaking  here  in 
terms  of  the  Trinity,  or  of  substance  and  essence,  or 


John  10  ; 16,  R.  V. 


42 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  any  of  the  categories  by  which  men  have  obscured 
that  simplicity,  and  in  which  they  have  stereotyped 
their  thinking  about  the  divine  nature.  Such  ab- 
stractions were  foreign  to  him  always : they  belong  to 
a later,  a philosophizing  age.  He  speaks  of  his  unity 
with  the  Father  as  of  a sort  which  disciple  may  have 
with  disciple,  and  which  must  be  capable  of  expres- 
sion, therefore,  in  terms  of  human  experience. 
“My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me,  and 
to  accomplish  his  work;”  “The  words  that  I say 
unto  you  I speak  not  from  myself:  but  the  Father 
abiding  in  me  doeth  his  works;”  “My  Father 
worketh  even  until  now,  and  I work” : — in  such  ex- 
pressions lies  the  secret  of  his  meaning.  Evidently 
he  was  thinking  of  that  moral  and  spiritual  fellowship 
in  which  he  was  united  with  the  Father,  of  a com- 
munity of  thought  and  purpose,  and  of  partnership 
in  service.  There  is  no  division  of  interest,  no  con- 
flict of  will,  no  contradiction  in  word,  no  antagonism 
in  action  between  himself  and  the  Father;  and  it  was 
such  unity  that  Jesus  desired  the  disciples  should 
enjoy  with  one  another. 

It  was,  further,  a moral  unity,  cemented  by  the 
possession  in  common  of  a single  moral  ideal.  Jesus 
first  prayed  that  his  disciples  might  be  kept  from 
the  soiling  influences  of  the  world  and  dedicated  to 
the  truth,  and  then  that  they  might  dwell  together 
in  loving  fellowship.  Sin  drives  men  apart  and 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTLVN  UNITY  43 


keeps  them  apart.  It  is  always  divisive.  The 
greatest  obstacle  to  Christian  unity  is  selfishness. 
In  proportion  as  the  disciples  of  Jesus  are  free  from 
worldliness  and  devoted  to  the  truth  will  they  be 
drawn  together:  the  more  truly  Christlike  they 
are,  in  other  words,  the  more  closely  united  they 
will  be. 

Above  all,  it  was  a vital  unity  which  Jesus  desired 
for  his  disciples,  the  bond  of  which  should  be  the 
possession  of  a common  spiritual  experience.  He 
yearned  that  the  disciples  should  share  in  the  divine 
life  by  which  he,  himself,  was  consciously  energized, 
and  thus  be  united  with  God  and  with  each  other. 
Through  his  presence  in  the  lives  of  the  disciples 
such  a union  was  to  be  perfected;  his  was  the  life 
of  the  vine  which,  flowing  into  the  branches,  was  to 
relate  them  to  one  another  as  parts  of  a single 
organism. 

It  was  such  unity  as  this,  spiritual,  moral,  vital, 
that  Jesus  desired  for  his  disciples  in  every  age. 
He  was  praying  not  merely  for  the  little  group  of 
the  Twelve,  but  “for  them  also  that  believe  on  me 
through  their  word;”  and  the  bond  upon  which 
Jesus  depended  to  unite  the  company  of  his  im- 
mediate disciples  is  the  only  bond  that  is  strong 
enough  to  hold  together  the  Church  in  any  age. 
They  who  are  not  first  united  to  Christ  in  loyalty 
and  love,  and  to  one  another  by  the  consciousness 


44 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


that  they  share  a common  spiritual  life,  will  never 
be  held  together  long  by  the  artificial  bonds  of 
organization,  or  creed,  or  ecclesiastical  authority. 
No  other  grounds  of  unity  are  possible  in  the  twen- 
tieth century  than  those  upon  which  was  built  the 
unity  of  the  first. 

Such  a spirit  manifest  in  the  disciples  Jesus  be- 
lieved to  be  essential  to  the  fulfilment  of  their  mis- 
sion. To  him  it  was  not  conceivable  that  the  dis- 
ciples could  ever  win  the  world  unless  they  were 
united.  A divided  Church  is  a defeated  Church. 
If  the  world  is  to  be  convinced  of  the  divine  mission 
and  authority  of  the  Messiah,  as  it  so  sadly  needs 
to  be  convinced,  his  disciples  must  speak  together, 
with  one  voice;  and  if  the  world  is  to  be  persuaded 
that  God  loves  the  Church  of  Christ  and  that  it  is 
entitled  to  represent  him,  then  members  of  the 
Church  must  love  one  another.  Truth  proclaimed 
through  faction  can  have  no  power  over  the  w'orld. 
The  strongest  argument  for  the  genuineness  of 
Christianity  is  lives  controlled  by  it;  and  factious 
and  contentious  spirits  belie  the  presence  of  Christ. 
The  most  convincing  Christian  apologetic  is  a Chris- 
tian community  united  in  love.  If  love  for  Christ 
is  so  weak  in  the  Church  that  it  cannot  hold  together 
those  that  profess  it,  how  can  it  hope  to  win  a hostile 
or  indifferent  world? 

Such  was  the  principle  and  ideal  of  unity  with 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  45 


which  the  company  of  disciples  of  Jesus  started  upon 
their  world-wide  career.  It  was  natural  and  in- 
evitable, in  the  circumstances  in  which  they  found 
themselves,  that  the  little  group  of  believers  and 
those  whom  they  attracted  to  their  number,  in  their 
attempt  to  realize  this  ideal,  and  fulfil  the  prayer  of 
their  Lord,  should  effect  some  form  of  organization. 
The  soul  must  clothe  itself  with  a body  if  it  is  to  be 
visible;  the  spirit  of  unity  that  prevailed  among 
the  disciples  must  disclose  itself  if  it  is  to  bear  its 
message  to  the  world.  Thus,  wherever  the  apostles 
journeyed  upon  their  preaching  tours  they  formed 
their  converts  into  local  brotherhoods  or  churches. 
Paul  tells  us  that  he  established  churches  in  every 
city.  These  churches,  moreover,  wherever  located, 
were  bound  to  one  another  within  the  fold  of  a more 
inclusive  brotherhood.  Throughout  the  apostolic 
age,  while  there  were  churches  at  Antioch,  at  Cor- 
inth, at  Laodicea,  and  elsewhere,  they  were  united 
in  more  than  a mere  confederation.  From  the 
beginning  all  Christians  thought  of  themselves, 
not  simply  as  members  of  a local  congregation  at 
Philippi  or  Ephesus,  but  as  members  of  the  universal 
Christian  Church  of  which  the  church  in  a particular 
city  was  only  a local  manifestation.  The  earliest 
Christians  thought  of  their  community  as  a family, 
and  conversion  marked  their  adoption  into  the 
household  of  faith.  Wherever  the  Church  spread. 


46  THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

this  conception  of  its  character  continued,  and  Chris- 
tians everywhere  were  brethren,  and  members  of 
the  same  family  in  Christd 
The  desire  of  the  Apostle  Paul  to  promote  this 
sentiment  is  evident  throughout  all  his  epistles. 
In  founding  churches  among  the  Gentiles  he  was 
not,  as  he  conceived  it,  establishing  independent 
organizations,  but  was  adding  to  the  Christian 
family.  The  Gentiles  were  to  be  grafted  in  among 
the  Jewish  Christians  and  to  become  “ partaker  with 
them  of  the  root  of  the  fatness  of  the  olive  tree.”^ 
It  was  Paul’s  desire,  not  merely  to  promote  the  unity 
of  the  Church,  but  to  secure  the  co-operation  of  all 
the  churches  that  he  founded  with  the  Jerusalem 
church  in  particular,  and  it  was  because  that  union 
was  endangered  that  he  was  caused  such  anxiety 
at  the  time  of  the  Council  at  Jerusalem.  It  Is  true 
that  the  unity  of  spirit  between  the  Gentile  churches 
and  the  church  at  Jerusalem  was  never  ideal;  but 
the  earnest  desire  of  the  apostle  that  it  should  be 
cemented  is  evident  in  his  emphasis  upon  the  great 
collection  for  the  poor  saints  at  Jerusalem,  which  he 
urged  so  strongly  upon  the  churches  that  he  had 
founded,  in  the  hope  that  this  evidence  of  good-will 
might  bind  the  parent  church  to  them  in  closer 
fellowship. 


* Cf.  McGiffert,  Tks  Apostolic  Age,  p.  636  ff. 
2 Rom.  11  : 17  ff. 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  47 


It  is  of  the  Church  universal  that  Paul  is  think- 
ing when  he  speaks  of  it  as  “the  body  of  Christ,”^ 
and  uses  the  figure  as  an  argument  particularly 
against  the  sin  of  schism.  “For  as  the  body  is 
one,  and  hath  many  members,  and  all  the  members 
of  the  body,  being  many,  are  one  body;  so  also,”  he 
declares,  “is  Christ.  For  in  one  Spirit  were  we  all 
baptized  into  one  body,  whether  Jews  or  Greeks, 
whether  bond  or  free;  and  were  all  made  to  drink  of 
one  Spirit.”  While  he  finds  abundant  scope  for 
variety  and  diversity  within  the  unity  of  the  Church, 
as  there  are  differences  of  function  and  honor  among 
the  members  of  the  body,  he  urges  the  utmost  con- 
sideration and  mutual  forbearance  among  the  con- 
stituent members  in  order  “that  there  should  be  no 
schism  in  the  body.”  He  strongly  deprecates  the 
forming  of  sects  under  the  leadership  and  name  of 
human  teachers  as  doing  violence  to  the  unity  of  the 
body  of  Christ,  for  that  Christ  should  be  divided 
is  to  him  both  an  abhorrent  and  an  impossible  idea.^ 
He  continually  urges  his  converts  that  they  endeavor 
to  “keep  the  unity  of  the  Spirit  in  the  bond  of 
peace.”  “There  is  one  body,”  he  declares,  “and 
one  Spirit,  even  as  also  ye  were  called  in  one  hope 
of  your  calling;  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  baptism, 
one  God  and  Father  of  all,  who  is  over  all,  and 
through  all,  and  in  all.”  The  various  gifts  dis- 

1 1.  Cor.  12  : 12-27.  a I.  Cor.  1 : 13  ff. 


48 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


tributed  by  the  ascended  Christ  to  believers  have 
for  the  goal  of  their  exercise  “the  perfecting  of  the 
saints  unto  the  work  of  ministering,  unto  the  build- 
ing up  of  the  body  of  Christ : till  we  all  attain  unto 
the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  knowledge  of  the 
Son  of  God,  unto  a full-grown  man,  unto  the  measure 
of  the  stature  of  the  fulness  of  Christ.”^ 

During  the  apostolic  period  the  unity  of  the 
Church,  it  is  evident,  was  one  of  spirit  and  not  of 
organization.  Differences  of  church  polity  appear 
even  within  New  Testament  times.  The  organiza- 
tion of  the  earliest  churches  was  the  simplest  pos- 
sible, and  was  often  affected  by  local  condition  and 
custom.  The  scattered  Christian  communities  were 
held  together,  not  by  any  scheme  of  organization  or 
governmental  authority  exercised  from  without,  nor 
by  subscription  to  a single  creedal  statement;  but 
by  possession,  in  common,  of  the  ideal  of  a united 
Church.  As  members  of  the  one  body  of  Christ 
they  were  bound  to  love  their  brethren.  There 
was  no  central  government,  no  ecclesiastical  hier- 
archy, no  compulsion  but  the  compulsion  of  love. 
That  the  separate  churches  did  not  diverge  and 
become  altogether  independent  of  one  another  in 
their  developing  life  was  due  to  the  possession  of  a 
single  ideal  and  spirit.  Their  sense  of  unity  was 
fostered  by  the  visits  of  apostles  and  prophets  from 


> Eph.  4 : 3-6;  12,  13. 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  49 

the  parent  church,  by  an  interchange  of  visits  on  the 
part  of  local  leaders,  by  the  circulation  of  Christian 
literature  among  the  churches,  particularly  the 
letters  of  the  apostles,  and  most  of  all  by  the  per- 
secution which  they  endured  together  at  the  hands 
of  Jew  and  Gentile.  • While  these  cemented  the 
union,  they  did  not  create  it.  It  was  a purely  ideal 
unity,  dependent  upon  the  belief  of  Christians  every- 
where that  their  Lord  meant  them  to  be  one,  and 
that  love  for  Him  involved  it.  Says  Prof.  Glover, 
in  his  Conflict  of  Religions  in  the  Early  Roman  Em- 
pire, “Two  things  stand  out,  when  we  study  the 
character  of  early  Christianity — its  great  complexity 
and  variety,  and  its  unity  in  the  personality  of  Jesus 
of  Nazareth.” 

Several  generations  passed  before  the  process 
began  that  was  to  transform  this  spiritual  unity  of 
the  first  disciples  into  a “catholicity,”  which  de- 
pended for  its  expression  upon  a form  of  church 
polity.  Gradually  the  independence  of  the  local 
church  was  surrendered  to  a diocesan  bishop  as  the 
visible  representative  of  the  universal  Church ; 
however,  with  this  outward  appearance  of  unity 
there  was  no  corresponding  growth  in  the  spirit 
of  it.  The  spirit  of  unity  that  sprang  from  a wealth 
of  love  and  the  sense  of  a common  mission  and 
allegiance  slowly  lost  ground  before  the  advance  of 
a visible  and  formal  unity  manifested  in  a hierarchy 


4 


50  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

of  church  officials  and  in  authoritative  creeds  and 
councils.  Toward  the  close  of  the  apostolic  age 
unity  was  more  and  more  secured  by  the  simple 
method  of  excluding  all  who  differed  with  the  ruling 
majority,  until  the  Church  was  united,  indeed,  but 
had  ceased  to  be  comprehensive. 

Most  of  the  dissenting  groups  of  the  first  three 
centuries  were  actuated  by  a desire  to  return  to  the 
simplicity  of  the  faith  and  order  of  the  apostles, 
but  their  failure  to  secure  the  favor  of  the  dominant 
majority  branded  them  as  heretics,  and  pronounced 
their  doom.  “Many  schisms  arose  in  the  early 
ages,”  wrote  Dr.  Philip  Schaff,  “before  and  after 
the  Council  of  Nicea.  Almost  every  great  contro- 
versy resulted  in  the  excommunication  of  the  de- 
feated party,  who  organized  a separate  sect,  if  they 
were  not  exterminated  by  the  civil  power.  The 
Nestorians,  Armenians,  Jacobites,  and  Copts,  who 
seceded  from  the  Greek  Orthodox  Church,  continue 
to  this  day  as  relics  of  dead  controversies.”^  The 
beginning  of  the  age  of  Catholicism  marked  the 
beginning  of  sectarianism  through  the  perpetual 
protest  of  successive  groups  of  Christians  who  re- 
sisted the  drift  of  the  leaders  of  the  Church  away 
from  the  doctrines  and  practices  of  the  apostolic 
age. 

It  is  no  part  of  our  purpose  to  review  the  history 


^ Schaff,  The  Reunion  of  Christendom,  p.  5. 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  51 

of  succeeding  ages,  or  to  indicate  in  more  than  out- 
line the  steps  by  which  a formal  unity  was  secured 
through  the  development  of  a compact  and  powerful 
ecclesiastical  organization,  and  the  promulgation  of 
authoritative  dogmas.  The  Church  was  compelled 
to  pay  the  price  of  a growing  popularity  in  the  grad- 
ual materialization  of  its  ideals.  Among  the  thou- 
sands who  flocked  into  its  fold  were  many  who  were 
imperfectly  weaned  from  paganism,  and  who 
brought  with  them  their  pagan  ideals  and  cere- 
monies. The  pressure  of  the  intellectualism  of  the 
Greco-Roman  world,  in  the  midst  of  which  it  lived, 
tempted  the  Church  to  formulate  its  creeds  in  the 
language  of  the  current  philosophies.  The  struggle 
of  the  Church  with  its  most  formidable  antagonist. 
Gnosticism,  and  its  attendant  errors,  appeared  to 
the  Church  to  compel  it  to  define  with  the  utmost 
exactness  the  essentials  of  orthodoxy,  and  to  em- 
phasize its  distinctive  ceremonies  as  necessary  to 
salvation.  The  free  and  plastic  polity  of  the  New 
Testament  was  early  abandoned  and  the  Church 
was  modeled  upon  the  Empire.  The  bishop  ceased 
to  be  the  overseer  of  a single  parish  and  became  the 
governor  of  a district,  like  the  Roman  proconsul. 
The  college  of  cardinals  corresponded  to  the  senate, 
and  the  pope  was  established  on  Caesar’s  seat  to 
rule  a spiritual  and  temporal  empire.  The  spirit 
of  the  gospel  was  imprisoned  within  semi-legal 


52 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


forms;  penance  took  the  place  of  penitence;  ortho- 
doxy became  submission  to  the  councils,  and  heresy 
was  identified  with  disobedience  to  them.  Faith 
lost  its  experimental,  vital  character,  and  became 
intellectual  assent  to  dogma;  while  the  simple 
ordinances  observed  by  the  early  Church  developed 
into  sacraments  endowed  with  a magical  efficacy. 
Freedom  and  spontaneity  in  worship  gave  way 
before  the  exclusive  use  of  liturgies.  Where  moral 
suasion  failed  to  secure  unity,  force  was  substituted; 
and  individual  liberty  was  sacrificed  upon  the  altar 
of  authority. 

At  length,  after  the  long  sleep  of  the  Dark  Ages, 
the  light  of  the  Renaissance  broke  through  the  night, 
not  only  awakening  the  minds  of  men  to  a new  appre- 
ciation of  their  heritage  in  art  and  literature,  which 
had  been  so  long  neglected,  but  rousing  the  slumber- 
ing consciences  of  men  to  claim  again  that  spiritual 
liberty  which  was  the  birthright  of  the  earl}^  Church. 
The  new  learning  stimulated  the  spirit  of  criticism; 
a new  nationalism  stirred  the  spirit  of  revolt;  the 
gospel,  rediscovered,  kindled  again  the  embers  of 
the  apostolic  faith  in  the  hearts  of  thousands;  and 
the  spirit  of  man  entered  upon  a new  career  of  free- 
dom. The  Reformation  shattered  in  pieces  the 
formal  unity  of  the  Church.  The  right  of  every 
man  to  interpret  the  Scriptures  for  himself  was 
asserted  in  the  face  of  arrogant  authority,  and  men 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTLA.N  UNITY  53 


claimed  again  the  privilege  of  access  to  the  divine 
Father  without  the  intervention  of  priest,  or  saint, 
or  institution. 

This  marked  the  beginning  of  the  modern  age. 
The  ferment  of  the  new  wine  broke  the  ancient 
wine-skins,  and  new  bottles  were  needed  to  receive 
it.  For  four  centuries  a large  part  of  Christendom 
has  enjoyed  a measure  of  religious  freedom,  and  the 
spirit  of  man  has  created  a multitude  of  institutions 
through  which  the  religious  impulse  has  found  ex- 
pression. Beyond  computation  has  been  the  gain 
of  the  race  from  the  rediscovery  of  those  formative 
ideas  which  were  the  d;ymamic  of  the  Reformation. 
Yet  even  freedom  has  its  dangers,  and  may  easily 
degenerate  into  license.  Individuality  unrestrained 
tends  toward  self-assertion  and  eccentricity.  The 
revolt  against  an  unnatural  and  compulsory  uni- 
formity has  not  been  attended  by  the  recovery  of 
the  secret  of  that  spiritual  unity  which  held  to- 
gether the  apostolic  Church,  for  the  preservation  of 
which  the  Master  prayed. 

In  America,  which  has  long  enjoyed  the  blessings 
of  that  religious  liberty  of  which  Roger  Williams  was 
the  first  exponent,  the  tendency  toward  division 
and  subdivision  has  gone  the  farthest,  until,  in 
its  143  denominations  of  Christians,  it  would  seem 
that  every  possible  difference  of  doctrine  and  pro- 
cedure must  be  represented.  The  “dissidence  of 


54 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


dissent”  has  reached  a rediictio  ad  absurdum.  In 
the  dissipation  of  resources,  the  duplication  of 
agencies,  the  competition  in  over-churched  com- 
munities and  the  neglect  of  needy  areas  which  such 
division  of  its  forces  entails,  Protestantism  has 
passed  the  danger  point,  and  its  power  to  achieve 
the  thing  for  which  it  was  created  has  already 
suffered  loss.  Energy  that  ought  to  have  been 
directed  toward  the  redemption  of  the  world  has 
been  spent  in  wasteful  rivalry,  and  even  in  recrimina- 
tion. The  seamless  robe  of  Christ  is  rent,  and  the 
Church,  his  body,  is  torn  into  fragments.  A babel 
of  discordant  voices  threatens  to  drown  the  voice 
of  prophecy;  every  vagary  claims  the  right  of  ut- 
terance; and  under  cloak  of  the  right  of  private 
judgment  the  duties  of  tolerance  and  charity  are  in 
danger  of  being  forgotten.  This  is  the  weakness 
and  the  scandal  of  Protestantism. 

As  the  magnitude  of  the  missionary  task  at  home 
and  abroad  is  more  fully  grasped,  there  has  come  a 
despair  of  success  except  through  the  united  efforts 
of  a united  Church.  They  who  pray,  “Thy  kingdom 
come,”  are  forced  also  to  pray  for  the  servants  of  the 
kingdom  “that  they  may  all  be  one.”  The  world 
will  never  be  won  to  Christ  by  guerrilla  warfare,  by 
disorganized  bands  of  partisans;  but  only  by  an 
ordered  campaign  of  disciplined  troops  that  advance 
together.  The  native  Christians  upon  the  foreign 


NEW  TESTAMENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  55 


field,  the  first  fruits  of  the  missionary  enterprise, 
and  missionaries  upon  the  frontier  in  the  home  land, 
are  the  foremost  advocates  of  a policy  of  union  and 
co-operation,  of  the  lack  of  which  they  have  been  the 
most  unfortunate  victims. 

The  problems  of  social  life  that  so  largely  occupy 
the  thought  of  Christendom  to-day  are  a challenge 
to  the  Church  to  unite  for  their  solution.  The  ills 
from  which  society  is  suffering  are  more  than  eco- 
nomic, and  economic  readjustments  alone  will  not 
suffice  to  correct  them.  Believing,  as  it  does,  that  it 
holds  the  secret  of  a real  brotherhood  of  man  whose 
attainment  is  fundamental  to  the  solution  of  every 
social  problem,  the  Church  owes  a duty  to  society; 
but  it  never  can  perform  that  duty  until  it  shall 
itself  incarnate  the  spirit  of  brotherhood  and  speak 
with  the  power  and  weight  of  a united  testimony. 

Slowly  the  conviction  is  being  borne  in  upon  the 
consciousness  of  Christendom  that  there  is  no  future 
for  a divided  Church.  “An  unbelieving  world,” 
Dr.  John  R.  Mott  has  said,  “is  the  price  we  are  pay- 
ing for  a divided  Christianity.”  The  forces  of  evil 
on  every  side  are  consolidating  in  an  unholy  alliance. 
The  children  of  darkness  are  wiser  far  in  their  gen- 
eration than  the  children  of  light.  The  Church  is 
urged  to  a crusade  the  desperate  character  of  which 
daily  becomes  more  clear;  and,  if  Tancred  and 
Baldwin  are  to  war  with  one  another  and  spend  the 


56 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


strength  of  the  crusading  army,  the  hosts  of  the 
Saracens  may  well  expect  an  easy  victory.  A 
thousand  voices  within  and  without  are  calling  upon 
the  Church  to  unite,  and  to  combine  its  forces.  The 
measure  in  which  the  people  of  God  of  the  twentieth 
century  respond  to  that  appeal  is  the  supreme  test 
of  modern  Christianity. 

So  in  the  midst  of  the  confusion  and  noise  there 
may  be  heard  a still,  small  voice  speaking  with  an 
insistence  that  compels  attention,  that  is  deeply 
moving  the  heart  of  Christendom  to-day.  It  is 
the  voice  of  the  Lord  of  the  Church  praying  still, 
as  he  once  prayed  in  the  upper  room  for  his  disciples, 
“that  they  may  all  be  one;  even  as  thou.  Father, 
art  in  me,  and  I in  thee,  that  they  also  may  be  in  us: 
that  the  world  may  believe  that  thou  didst  send 
me.”  Men  are  turning  hopefully  to  a study  of  the 
sources  of  the  unity  of  the  early  Church,  that  dwelt 
in  a holy  fellowship  cemented  by  loyalty  and  love, 
and  are  daring  to  believe  that  what  has  been  may  be 
again.  If  Jesus  prayed  for  the  unity  of  his  disciples 
it  must  be  a practicable  ideal;  and,  if  so,  it  shall  be 
achieved!  Somehow,  it  knows  not  yet  how,  the 
prayer  of  its  Lord  must  be  fulfilled  by  the  Church. 
What  Jesus  prayed  for,  his  disciples  must  work  for. 
Without  forfeiting  again  the  benefits  of  a freedom 
so  dearly  bought,  the  disciples  of  Jesus  must  be  one. 

Great  opportunities  await  the  advent  of  the  new 


NEW  TESTAINIENT  IDEAL  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  57 


catholicity.  A world  weary  of  the  burdens  of  in- 
creasing armaments,  and  torn  with  the  horrors  of 
unrighteous  war  sighs  for  universal  peace.  An 
awakening  democracy,  rising  to  seize  the  reins  of 
power  in  every  land,  must  be  spiritualized  if  it  is  to 
fulfil  its  lofty  destiny.  The  victims  of  materialism 
and  greed,  ground  beneath  the  iron  heel  of  a social 
and  economic  system  built  in  the  interest  of  a favored 
few,  call  aloud  to  the  Church  for  succor.  Every- 
where the  heathen  world  holds  out  manacled  hands 
of  entreaty,  beseeching  to  be  freed  from  the  iron 
bands  of  superstition.  And  in  the  face  of  the  need 
of  a crucified  humanity,  a disunited  Church  is  help- 
less. It  is  the  imperative  duty  of  the  disciples  of 
Jesus  to  get  together!  Reluctance  is  disloyalty  to 
the  Lord  who  prayed  for  them,  and  treachery  to  the 
world  for  which  he  died! 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN 
SPIRIT 


Unity  not  to  be  secured  at  the  sacrifice  of  principle. — 
Characteristic  differences  considered  unimportant  by  various 
denominations. — Rise  of  denominations  in  age  of  individual- 
ism.— ^The  new  social  organism — its  influence  upon  the  Church. 
— Examples  of  petty  differences  and  harsh  invectives. — Chang- 
ing world  conditions  forecast  spiritual  changes. — Co-operation 
in  theological  education. — Church  must  meet  its  problems. — 
Conditions  in  America  most  conducive  to  co-operation. 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT 

The  Christian  world  is  no  longer  willing  to  believe 
that  spiritual  liberty  must  be  maintained  at  the 
price  of  the  waste  and  loss  which  are  the  result  of 
its  divisions.  Is  it  not  possible,  men  are  asking 
everywhere,  for  Protestantism  to  conserve  the  prin- 
ciples that  are  precious  to  it,  and  that  constitute  its 
strength,  and  yet  find  a way  to  unite  its  scattered 
forces  and  heal  its  schisms?  May  it  not  even  con- 
tinue to  cherish  the  best  for  which  denominational- 
ism  has  stood,  and  still  be  freed  from  the  bonds  of  a 
narrowly  sectarian  and  partisan  spirit? 

It  may  be  readily  granted  that  catholicity  might 
be  bought  at  too  great  a cost.  There  is  no  magic  in 
mere  unity  that  would  compensate  for  the  surrender 
of  that  liberty  of  conscience,  and  that  insistence 
upon  the  spiritual  competency  of  the  individual 
which  have  been  the  glory  of  the  Protestant  move- 
ment. It  needs  no  argument  to  prove  that  spiritual 
vigor  and  fidelity  to  conviction  are  of  more  value 
than  anything  that  could  be  received  in  exchange 
for  them.  The  danger,  however,  that  Protestants 
will  take  a backward  step  and  betray  the  cause  for 


61 


62 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


which  their  fathers  bled  and  died  for  the  sake  of 
any  form  of  unity  is  exceedingly  remote.  If  a new 
unity  of  the  Church  could  be  secured  to-morrow  by 
the  surrender  of  principle  or  such  a sacrifice  of  spirit- 
ual liberty  as  was  demanded  by  the  so-called  Cath- 
olic ages  of  the  past,  it  would  be  broken  the  day 
after  to-morrow  by  a new  Reformation,  for  the  free 
spirit  of  man  would  assert  itself  again  and  the  arti- 
ficial bonds  would  break  like  tow  at  the  touch  of 
fire. 

It  is  charged  that  much  of  the  current  advocacy  of 
the  cause  of  Christian  unity  is  merely  the  expres- 
sion of  a lack  of  any  definite  religious  conviction 
whatsoever.  Without  a doubt,  to  one  who  thinks 
it  does  not  matter  what  one  believes,  all  shades  of 
belief  look  very  much  alike.  The  Romans  of  the 
Empire  were  broadly  tolerant  in  religious  matters, 
and  exceedingly  hospitable  to  new  religions,  so  that 
the  addition  of  another  god  or  two  to  the  pantheon 
provoked  little  comment;  but  it  was  because  in 
Rome  faith  in  the  gods  was  almost  dead.  It  is 
possible,  indeed,  to  be  so  broad  as  to  be  shallow, 
and  tolerance  may  be  only  another  name  for  indiffer- 
ence. “We  put  blinders  upon  horses,”  says  Dr. 
Parkhurst,  “just  so  that  they  may  not  take  broad 
views  of  things,  but  may  go  forward.”  Such  con- 
siderations as  these,  however,  may  easily  be  made  an 
excuse  for  moral  cowardice  and  spiritual  bigotry. 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  63 


A most  cordial  recognition  of  the  right  of  other  men 
to  their  convictions  is  surely  compatible  with  the 
most  loyal  allegiance  to  one’s  own.  It  would  be 
humiliating  to  be  compelled  to  confess  that  men  must 
be  purblind  or  cease  to  advance.  “A  faith  depen- 
dent upon  blinkers  and  fetters,  ” Sir  Oliver  Lodge  has 
said,  “ is  not  likely,  in  a progressive  age,  to  last  many 
generations.  Anchorage  to  a submerged  rock  is  not 
safe  amid  rising  waters.” 

Any  process  of  spiritual  enlargement  is  attended 
with  peril.  The  moment  of  greatest  danger  for  the 
“chambered  nautilus,”  of  which  Holmes  has  sung, 
was  doubtless  that  at  which,  its  outgrown  shell  dis- 
carded and  its  new  and  larger  dwelling  not  yet  con- 
structed, it  lay  exposed  to  every  passing  foe.  At 
such  a point  the  cause  of  Christian  unity  stands 
to-day.  Nevertheless,  whatever  danger  there  may 
be  that  the  larger  sympathy,  which  longs  for  co- 
operation and  unity  with  Christians  of  every  name, 
may  lapse  into  an  invertebrate  and  molluscoid  sort 
of  good  feeling  that  lacks  force  sufficient  to  accom- 
plish anything,  or  even  to  protect  itself  from  de- 
struction, there  is  still  greater  danger  that  a nar- 
rowly denominational  loyalty  may  degenerate  into 
mere  pride,  obstinacy,  and  prejudice.  There  is 
many  a man  who  sincerely  loves  the  denomination  to 
which  he  belongs, — because  he  was  reared  within  it, 
or  found  Christ  through  its  ministry,  or  has  labored 


64 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


within  its  ranks  until  its  interests  have  become 
identified  with  his  own,  or  because  he  believes  that 
of  all  denominations  it  is  most  faithful  to  New 
Testament  teaching, — but  who  finds  it  impossible 
to  ignore  the  fact  that  a multitude  of  other  men,  as 
sincere  and  as  Christian  as  he,  make  identical 
claims  for  their  own  denominations  and  profess  as 
great  a loyalty  to  them.  Each  one  among  the  larger 
Protestant  denominations  stoutly  claims  to  stand 
upon  the  New  Testament  platform,  and  justly 
prides  itself  upon  a record  of  useful  service.  And 
here  is  a curious  circumstance  that  must  impress 
itself  upon  the  mind  of  every  thoughtful  man,  that 
while  the  distinctive  principles  of  each  denomina- 
tion seem  to  its  adherents  to  be  so  important  and  so 
significant  for  all  the  world,  and  not  to  be  sacrificed, 
they  appear,  in  the  degree  in  which  they  are  dis- 
tinctive, to  be  of  very  little  consequence  to  other 
denominations,  whose  members  nevertheless  exhibit 
all  the  essential  marks  of  Christian  character  and 
usefulness.  Meanwhile  the  cause  of  the  kingdom 
suffers  irreparable  loss  from  the  division  of  its 
forces.  Reflection  upon  such  considerations  as 
these  is  breaking  down  the  barriers  of  prejudice 
that  once  separated  denominationalists  from  each 
other. 

While,  therefore,  the  current  advocacy  of  Chris- 
tian unity  may  be  due  occasionally  to  spiritual 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  65 


impoverishment  or  to  latitudinarianism,  indifference 
toward  the  issue,  or  the  failure  boldly  to  advocate 
it,  is  more  often  due  to  timidity,  or  to  ignorance, 
or  to  inertia  and  a blind  conservatism,  or  to  fear 
of  the  denominational  sheriffs  and  the  editors  and 
officials  who  are  constantly  occupied  in  keeping 
the  denominational  fences  in  repair. 

There  is  a zeal  that  believes  the  peculiarity  of  a 
denomination  to  be  the  best  thing  about  it,  and  that 
confuses  religion  with  the  ability  to  pronounce  de- 
nominational shibboleths,  and  that  rejoices  in  prin- 
ciples in  proportion  as  they  are  distinctive,  just  as 
there  is  a patriotism  that  cries,  “ My  country,  right 
or  wrong!”  To  those  who  accept  this  position,  the 
virtue  of  religion  lies  in  “the  dissidence  of  dissent.” 
Growing  up,  however,  by  the  side  of  what  President 
Butler  has  called  “the  international  mind”  is  an 
interdenominational  consciousness  which  must  be 
reckoned  with  to-day,  which,  while  loyal  to  dis- 
tinctive tenets,  sees  over  and  beyond  them,  and 
recognizes  the  more  imperative  claims  of  a higher 
loyalty  to  the  interests  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Denominational  divisions  took  their  rise  during 
the  period  marked  by  the  discovery  of  the  indi- 
vidual. It  is  among  the  glories  of  the  Reformation 
that  it  asserted  the  freedom  and  competency  of  man 
as  man  in  the  domain  of  religion,  and  thus  promul- 
gated a principle  which,  spreading  into  other  fields, 
5 


66 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


has  wrought  mightily  for  his  emancipation  from 
every  form  of  thraldom.  It  was  a splendid  and 
epoch-making  discovery,  that  of  the  rights  and  dig- 
nity of  man,  and  it  has  transformed  not  only  the 
religious  world,  but  the  worlds  of  industry  and  of 
politics,  shaping  legislation  and  government  and 
social  custom  and  economic  institutions  and  making 
always  for  liberty.  But  we  are  passing  to-day  out 
of  the  era  of  individualism  into  that  of  collectivism. 
We  would  not  part  with  an  atom  of  what  we  have 
gained,  nor  ever  again  lose  sight  of  the  individual, 
nor  permit  the  exploitation  of  his  rights;  but  we 
are  now  making  a new  discovery, — that  of  the  com- 
munity. Over  against  the  rights  of  a fraction  of 
society  is  the  right  of  society  as  a whole.  The  free 
competition  of  individuals  must  be  restrained  and 
regulated  in  the  interest  of  the  welfare  of  the  com- 
munity. This  is  the  new  emphasis  which  is  exercis- 
ing the  profoundest  influence  in  every  realm  of 
thought  and  conduct.  But,  while  the  spirit  of  in- 
dividualism was  a product  of  the  religious  instinct 
and  flrst  expressed  itself  in  the  religious  realm,  the 
collective  ideal  arose  in  the  social  and  economic  realm 
and  is  only  slowly  making  its  way  in  the  sphere  of 
religion.  Some  day  the  idea  of  “private  religion,” 
with  the  unrestrained  rights  of  competition  which 
it  involves,  will  go  the  way  of  that  conception  of 
“private  business”  which,  with  all  the  arrogant 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  67 


disregard  of  community  interests  that  it  represents, 
is  retreating  before  the  advance  of  the  spirit  of 
democracy. 

This  change  of  emphasis  from  the  individual  to 
the  social  organism  which  characterizes  our  times 
has  relegated  to  comparative  insignificance  many  of 
the  issues  that  once  divided  the  ranks  of  Christen- 
dom. Interest  has  shifted  from  creeds  to  conduct, 
and  from  a purely  personal  salvation  to  one  that 
shall  save  the  individual  indeed,  but  that  aims  also 
at  the  saving  of  society.  Men  are  weary  of  treat- 
ing symptoms  only,  and  in  every  avenue  of  activ- 
ity are  seeking  to  discover  causes  and  to  deal  with 
them  directly.  The  methods  of  social  science  are 
preventive  rather  than  merely  curative,  and  men 
now  endeavor  to  purify  the  stream  at  its  source 
rather  than  to  filter  it  at  the  outlet.  Instead  of 
merely  relieving  poverty,  they  seek  to  discover  and 
to  remove  the  causes  of  poverty.  The  old  method 
in  medicine  was  to  wait  until  the  patient  had  con- 
tracted a disease  and  then  to  exhaust  the  resources 
of  science  in  the  effort  to  cure  him.  The  modern 
method  is  to  attack  disease  at  its  source  through 
sanitation  and  hygiene.  This  is  increasingly  be- 
coming the  method  of  religion.  The  Church  is 
more  interested  than  it  once  was  in  the  conditions 
that  tempt  to  sin,  and  is  giving  attention  to  the 
means  of  prevention  as  well  as  to  those  of  cure.  As 


68 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


has  often  been  said,  it  is  well  to  play  the  Good 
Samaritan  and  to  bind  up  the  wounds  of  the  traveler 
beset  by  thieves,  but  it  is  necessary  also  to  illumine 
the  highway  from  Jericho  to  Jerusalem,  and  thor- 
oughly to  police  it,  so  that  the  traveler  may  pursue 
his  journey  in  safety. 

From  this  shifting  of  emphasis,  then,  there  has 
come  a new  appraisal  of  many  of  the  points  of 
difference  that  have  divided  the  forces  of  Christen- 
dom. Few  of  the  distinctive  denominational  tenets 
concern  matters  over  which  men  with  red  blood  in 
their  veins  can  become  enthusiastic  to-day.  Seldom 
do  they  coincide  with  a burning  conviction  of  living 
men.  They  lie  on  the  periphery  and  not  at  the 
center  of  religious  interest;  or  they  are  relics  of 
outgrown  controversies.  The  Church,  driven  for- 
ward by  the  impact  of  the  new  spirit  of  the  times, 
has  left  most  of  them  behind.  How  remote  at  the 
present  time  seem  some  of  the  differences  that 
once  divided  Christian  people-minute  points  of 
doctrine,  it  may  be,  or  of  ritual  observance!  In  one 
of  the  smaller  cities  of  the  Atlantic  coast  stand  two 
Presbyterian  churches,  facing  each  other,  upon 
opposite  sides  of  the  street.  They  are  the  result  of 
a division  that  occurred  in  one  of  them  almost  two 
generations  ago  because  a portion  of  the  congrega- 
tion held  to  a “mediate  atonement”  and  the  other 
to  an  “immediate  atonement,”  distinctions  which 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  69 


few  Christians  to-day  would  understand  without 
recourse  to  a theological  dictionary.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  the  eighteenth  century  the  Baptists  of 
Delaware  withdrew  from  fellowship  with  the  Bap- 
tists of  Philadelphia  because  the  latter  did  not 
“hold  to  the  laying  on  of  hands.”  Doubtless  many 
of  the  present  differences  will  some  day  seem  as 
remote.  Questions  of  the  validity  of  orders,  of 
postures  and  rubrics,  of  stoles  and  altar  cloths,  and 
of  ecclesiastical  millinery  in  general,  of  forms  of 
polity  and  of  modes  of  ordinances,  once  the  center 
of  bitter  controversy,  are  of  little  consequence  to- 
day. Men  are  weary,  also,  of  spending  precious 
time  in  “manicuring  one  another’s  theology,”  as 
Dr.  Shailer  Mathews  has  phrased  it.  The  questions 
in  which  the  present  generation  is  interested  are  such 
as  housing,  temperance,  the  purification  of  politics, 
the  extension  of  democracy,  the  protection  of  youth, 
the  abolition  of  poverty,  the  suppression  of  com- 
mercialized vice,  and  the  building  up  of  a real  King- 
dom of  God  upon  earth  through  the  transforma- 
tion of  men  into  the  likeness  of  Christ,  no  one  of 
which  undertakings  is  distinctive  of  any  single  de- 
nomination. These  are  the  great  enthusiasms;  and 
they  are  not  divisive,  but  are  common  to  men  of 
every  Christian  faith. 

Sectarianism  in  its  extreme  form  is  dying  to-day 
for  lack  of  nourishment,  as  a limb  would  die  if  a 


70 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


tourniquet  were  drawn  tightly  about  it,  shutting  off 
the  blood  supply.  Where  are  the  doughty  cham- 
pions who  once  were  ready  at  a moment's  notice  to 
descend  into  the  arena  and  break  a lance  in  the 
cause  of  some  denominational  peculiarity?  They 
are  gone, — gone  with  the  ancient  bitterness  which 
tainted  the  atmosphere  which  they  breathed.  The 
leading  evangelical  preachers  of  the  latter  part 
of  the  eighteenth  century  and  the  first  half  of  the 
nineteenth  were  “fighting  parsons,”  with  a freedom 
in  their  choice  of  verbal  weapons  that  appals  us 
to-day. 

“Sidney,  in  his  biography  of  Rowland  Hill, 
quotes  these  among  the  epithets  applied  to  the 
‘Calvinists’  by  ‘these  two  meek  and  loving  gentle- 
men, Messrs.  John  and  Charles  Wesley’:  ‘devil’s 
factors,  Satan’s  synagogues,  children  of  the  old, 
roaring,  hellish  murderer  who  believe  his  lie,  ad- 
vocates for  sin,  witnesses  for  the  father  of  lies, 
blasphemers,  Satan-sent  preachers.’”  “Among  the 
pet  names  applied  by  Hill  to  Wesley  were,  ‘the 
lying  apostle  of  the  Foundry,’  ‘a  designing  wolf,’ 
and  ‘a  dealer  in  stolen  wares.’  And  to  cap  the 
climax,  the  sentence  of  Hill’s  may  be  quoted  in 
which  Wesley  is  called  ‘as  unprincipled  as  a rock, 
and  as  silly  as  a jackdaw,  first  pilfering  his  neigh- 
bor’s plumage,  and  then  going  proudly  forth  dis- 
playing his  borrowed  tail  to  the  eyes  of  a laughing 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  71 


world.’”  ‘ Some  of  these  old-time  saints  had  what 
approached  a real  genius  for  billingsgate,  but  we 
do  not  reckon  it  to-day  among  their  virtues. 

Arrogant  and  extravagant  claims  on  the  part  of 
large  or  small  sects  that  think  themselves  to  be  the 
particular  favorites  of  heaven  and  to  have  got  a 
corner  on  salvation  are  discounted  to-day  as  soon 
as  uttered.  The  world  has  as  little  patience  with 
them  as  had  Ruskin  with  the  preacher  of  the  type 
that  he  ran  across  in  a little  chapel  in  Turin.  “ A 
little  squeaking  idiot,”  he  says,  “was  preaching  to 
an  audience  of  old  women  and  three  louts  that  they 
were  the  only  children  of  God  in  Turin;  and  that 
the  people  of  Turin,  outside  the  chapel,  and  that 
all  the  people  in  the  world,  out  of  sight  of  Monte 
Viso,  would  be  damned!”  Self-laudation  is  a mark 
of  decadence  wherever  met.  Men  are  very  defi- 
nitely convinced  that  they  are  not  to  be  saved  by 
right  thinking  merely,  and  that  religion  is  not  identi- 
cal with  theology:  creeds,  therefore,  do  not  hold 
the  pre-eminent  place  that  once  w'as  accorded  them. 
A form  of  church  polity,  also,  like  a horse,  “is  a 
vain  thing  for  safety.”  It  is  growing  harder  every 
year  to  maintain  the  denominational  fences.  De- 
plore it  though  we  may,  members  of  one  commun- 
ion, upon  changing  their  residence,  pass  with  in- 

'"The  Battle  of  the  Saints,”  G.  F.  Greene,  Outlook,  April  26,  1902, 
p.  1012.  Quoted  in  What  Must  the  Church  Do  to  be  Savedf  by  F.  Marion 
Simms. 


72 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


creasing  ease  into  membership  in  another,  and  are 
not  held  as  strongly  as  at  one  time  by  the  distinctive 
features  of  the  sect  to  which  they  gave  their  first 
allegiance.  They  join  with  a growing  frequency 
the  nearest  church,  or  that  which  they  think  is  ful- 
filling with  most  efficiency  what  they  believe  to  be 
the  real  mission  of  religion.  And  while  the  most 
apparent  differences  between  the  churches  are  losing 
something  of  their  significance,  other  marks  of 
divergence  are  appearing.  Every  communion  has 
its  liberal  and  conservative  wings,  and,  as  the 
perpendicular  lines  between  denominations  grow 
more  faint,  the  horizontal  lines  of  cleavage  which 
cut  through  them  all  appear  more  clearly.  There 
is  often  more  real  sympathy  and  spiritual  fellow- 
ship between  liberals  or  conservatives  of  dif- 
ferent denominations  than  exists  between  liberals 
and  conservatives  within  a single  body.  This  is  a 
phenomenon  of  much  significance,  the  ultimate  con- 
sequence of  which  it  is  too  early  to  prophesy. 

Such  indications  suggest  that  there  is  to  come, 
perhaps  within  our  time,  a startling  realignment  of 
Christian  forces.  The  world  of  thought  and  of  ac- 
tion moves  with  a bewildering  rapidity.  Ideas  rise, 
gain  acceptance,  spread,  and  are  now  put  into  exe- 
cution within  a period  incommensurably  more  brief 
than  the  process  would  have  taken  half  or  even  a 
quarter  of  a century  ago.  We  catch  our  breath  at 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  73 


the  speed  at  which  the  world  of  thought  is  moving. 
Witness  the  changes  in  political  ideals  and  practices 
in  recent  years  both  in  our  own  country  and  through- 
out the  world.  Democracy  in  England  advances 
with  giant  strides.  Oriental  Japan  is  transformed 
within  a decade,  and  has  become  a world  power. 
“Better  fifty  years  of  Europe  than  a cycle  of  Cathay,” 
we  used  to  quote;  but  China  has  overtaken  Europe 
and  has  turned  face  about  almost  in  a night.  In 
America  the  political  and  social  radicalism  of  yester- 
day is  the  conservatism  of  to-day.  The  impossible 
is  becoming  the  actual,  and  the  dream  of  the  political 
prophet  having  been  achieved  becomes  the  basis  of 
more  radical  proposals  still.  The  world  is  rapidly 
coming  to  the  conclusion  that  what  is  right  is  pos- 
sible, and  the  laggard  faith  of  the  Church  is  being 
shamed  into  action.  If  a larger  measure  of  Chris- 
tian unity  is  right,  if  it  is  the  ideal  of  the  Lord  of  the 
Church,  then  it  must  come,  and  none  can  say  it  nay. 

We  may  profitably  sit  at  the  feet  of  the  Christian 
Chinese  in  such  a matter.  Free  from  the  prejudices 
that  have  been  inherited  from  the  past  by  the  Chris- 
tians of  the  West,  it  may  well  be  that  they  are  able 
to  judge  more  impartially  than  we  as  to  the  character 
of  the  causes  that  divide  us.  If  these  men,  many  of 
whom  have  proved  their  sincerity  and  fidelity  to  the 
Christian  faith  by  tests  more  severe  than  any  to 
which  we  have  been  subjected;  if  they,  who  are  as 


74 


THE  UNION  OF  CHKISTIAN  FORCES 


able  intellectually  as  ourselves,  and  who  have  been 
willing  to  lay  down  their  lives  for  the  faith,  have 
deliberately  concluded  that  the  differences  that 
divide  our  Western  Christianity  into  fragments  are 
non-essential,  it  may  be  worth  while  for  us  to  recon- 
sider them.  And  if  we  can  contemplate  without 
alarm  the  disappearance  of  our  points  of  difference 
in  the  churches  we  have  founded  in  Eastern  lands, 
is  it  too  much  to  conclude  that  they  need  not,  in 
their  present  form,  be  perpetuated  forever  in  the 
West? 

Surely  there  is  possible  a fellowship  and  co- 
operation of  the  closest  nature  which  does  not  re- 
quire the  slightest  unfaithfulness  to  individual 
convictions.  Already  in  some  of  our  theological 
seminaries  students  of  many  denominations  gather. 
They  study  homiletics,  theology,  church  history, 
ethics,  and  sociology  together:  in  such  subjects 
there  is  general  agreement.  Upon  the  subjects 
wherein  there  is  disagreement,  special  teachers  are 
appointed  who  present  the  points  of  view  of  particu- 
lar denominations.  It  happens,  as  was  to  be  ex- 
pected, that  the  students  come  forth  to  take  up  the 
work  of  the  denominations  to  which  they  belong, — 
Presbyterians,  Congregationalists,  Baptists,  Method- 
ists, or  Episcopalians, — as  they  entered,  but  wiser 
and  broader,  with  a richer  experience  and  a wider 
sympathy  and  fellowship,  through  contact  with 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  75 


those  of  other  faiths.  A large  measure  of  co- 
operation in  theological  education  is  already  pos- 
sible. Will  the  witness  of  the  denominations  to  the 
peculiar  truths  which  they  conceive  themselves 
severally  to  hold  in  trust  be  weakened  if  they  mingle 
together  in  fellowship,  worship,  and  service?  Is  it 
not  at  least  conceivable  that  a Baptist’s  testimony 
to  the  symbolism  and  spiritual  value  of  the  apostolic 
mode  of  baptism,  or  a Presbyterian’s  witness  to  the 
necessity  of  a sound  theology,  or  an  Episcopalian’s 
emphasis  upon  institutional  religion  would  be  quite 
as  potent  for  good  if  they  freely  united  in  a single 
church,  for  worship  and  service,  as  it  can  possibly 
be  while  each  remains  a member  of  a church  com- 
posed of  those  only  who  already  have  identical 
thoughts  and  is  fenced  off  from  contact  with  those 
who  differ?  Differences  of  conviction,  quite  as 
serious  as  any  that  divide  denominations  from  one 
another,  are  frequently  found  within  the  membership 
of  a single  denomination  without  any  impairment  of 
fellowship.  Why  may  not  members  of  several 
denominations,  therefore,  unite  without  discord  in 
a community  church,  each  retaining  liberty  to  speak 
the  truth  in  love  as  he  sees  it,  and  to  adhere  to  his 
distinctive  theology?  One  of  the  causes  of  our 
divisions  lies  in  the  fact  that  they  arose  in  an  age 
when  our  modern  methods  of  intercommunication 
were  unknown,  and  men  with  different  conceptions 


76 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  truth  could  not  easily  meet;  and  truth  is  not 
learned  in  isolation.  The  yeast  must  be  mixed  with 
the  lump  if  it  is  to  leaven  it.  One  of  the  penalties 
of  our  separation  is  that  we  fail  to  understand  each 
other,  and  to  appreciate  the  truths  that  we  severally 
hold.  A community  church  in  which  various 
denominations  combine  ought  to  develop  a new  and 
more  comprehensive  theology  and  polity  and  prac- 
tice, as  it  absorbs  the  best  that  each  of  its  constituent 
elements  has  to  contribute. 

Whatever  the  method,  some  way  must  be  found 
by  which  Christianity  can  meet  its  problems  with 
united  front.  The  present  stress  of  the  Church  has 
made  it  hospitable  to  the  thought  of  the  unification 
of  its  forces.  “To  be  enthusiastic  about  the  Church 
in  its  present  condition,”  writes  Prof.  A.  B.  Bruce, 
“is  impossible.”  “There  is  such  a thing  as  a relig- 
ious crisis  in  America,”  says  a careful  observer, 
“however  much  we  may  scoff  at  the  idea.”  In  view 
of  the  serious  problems  which  the  Church  is  facing — 
the  arrogance  of  vice,  the  federation  of  all  forms  of 
evil,  the  growth  of  unbelief  and  indifference,  waning 
congregations,  the  alienation  of  the  workingman — 
how  pitifully  small  and  sad  seem  its  fine  discrimina- 
tions of  doctrine,  its  ecclesiastical  frills  and  furbelows, 
its  liturgical  refinements  and  delicacies  of  deport- 
ment in  worship,  its  petty  scruples  as  to  washing  of 
cups  and  pots  and  tables,  its  Pharisaic  pretensions 


THE  PASSING  OF  THE  SECTARIAN  SPIRIT  77 


and  hairsplittings,  its  competitive  ambitions,  its 
insistence  upon  forms  and  ceremonies,  and  its  dis- 
putes as  to  the  possession  of  the  requisite  authority 
to  do  the  things  that  so  greatly  need  to  be  done, 
which  are  the  cause  or  the  effect  of  its  unfortunate 
divisions!  Like  the  American  colonies  in  the  days 
of  the  Revolution,  the  churches  of  America  must 
hang  together  or  they  will  hang  separately.  It  is 
imperative  that  they  should  make  up  their  differ- 
ences and  join  ranks.  As  the  British  ships  drew  near 
the  French  at  the  battle  of  Trafalgar,  Admiral 
Nelson  called  to  his  flagship  captains,  Collingwood 
and  Hardy,  who  up  to  that  time  had  been  bitter 
enemies,  and  commanded  them  to  shake  hands, 
saying,  as  he  pointed  to  the  French  ships  of  the  line, 
“Gentlemen,  there  is  your  enemy!” 

If  an  effective  co-operative  union  of  Christian 
forces  is  possible  anywhere  in  the  world,  surely  it 
should  be  possible  in  America.  In  a free  and  demo- 
cratic country,  where,  in  theory  at  least,  every  man 
counts  for  one  and  no  man  for  more  than  one,  whose 
political  institutions  are  founded  upon  the  town 
meeting,  where  men  of  every  faith  and  of  different 
ideas  meet  to  further  the  interests  of  the  com- 
munity, setting  aside  their  personal  preferences  and 
submitting  to  the  will  of  the  majority,  the  ability 
to  think  and  act  in  common  is  instilled  into  the  very 
blood.  Here  is  no  established  Church  to  foster 


78 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


bitterness  or  create  jealousies.  Freedom  of  religious 
conviction  is  guaranteed  to  every  citizen.  Here  are 
the  opportunities  of  a country  a large  part  of  which 
is  still  new,  and  the  pressing  needs  of  great  frontier 
districts  still  unsupplied  with  religious  privileges. 

There  is  possible  a co-operative  union  which  sacri- 
fices nothing  that  is  essential,  and  slowly  we  are 
finding  our  way  toward  it.  He  who  furthers  this 
end,  however  slight  may  be  his  contribution,  is 
engaged  in  the  noblest  work  to  which  he  can  set  his 
hand.  “To  effect  one  real  step  in  the  direction  of 
reunion,”  said  Mr.  Gladstone,  “after  the  results  of 
the  last  five  hundred  years,  would  be  enough  to  lead 
any  man  to  lay  down  his  head  and  die  contentedly.” 


THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF 
CHRISTIAN  UNITY 


Place  of  love  in  Christian  unity. — Study  of  church  history 
conduces  to  unity : it  reveals  both  imperfections  and  triumphs 
in  each  denomination. — Teaching  of  the  New  Testament  and 
example  of  the  apostolic  Church. — Group  individuality. — 
Unity  of  Christian  scholarship. — Doctrinal  unity. — ^Ethical 
unity. — Unity  in  charitable  activities. — Unity  in  the  aim  and 
purpose  of  the  Church. — Christian  love  the  secret  of  unity. 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY 

Specific  plans  and  programs  for  the  unification 
of  the  forces  of  Christendom  are  advanced  on  every 
hand;  but  before  any  one  of  these  can  be  put  into 
'operation,  however  practical  it  may  be  or  theoreti- 
cally wise,  there  must  be  a more  thorough  cultiva- 
tion of  the  spirit  of  Christian  love.  The  unity  for 
which  we  pray,  when  it  comes,  will  not  be  a manu- 
facture, but  a growth.  Like  the  Kingdom  of  God  it 
“cometh  not  with  observation:  neither  shall  they 
say,  Lo,  here!  or  lo,  there!”  for,  behold,  the  sub- 
stance of  Christian  unity  “is  within  you.”  World 
Conferences  on  Faith  and  Order,  Chicago-Lambeth 
Proposals,  Denominational  Commissions  on  Comity 
or  Christian  Union  are,  without  doubt,  helpful;  but 
these  never  can  accomplish  anything  unless  they 
find  within  the  churches  a deepening  spirit  of  Chris- 
tian love  to  which  they  can  make  their  appeal.  The 
consummation  of  any  scheme  of  union,  whether  of 
local  churches  or  of  denominations,  would  be,  like 
a marriage  without  affection,  a calamity  and  fore- 
doomed to  failure,  if  it  were  not  the  fruit  of  Christian 
love.  And  love  cannot  be  forced  or  hurried:  it 


6 


81 


82 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


must  lead,  not  follow.  The  spirit  of  co-operation 
is  not  always  most  prevalent  where  circumstances 
seem  most  to  favor  it.  It  is  less  evident,  sometimes, 
in  communities  of  few  churches  that  do  not  need  to 
compete  than  in  others  of  many  churches  in  which 
competition  can  hardly  be  avoided.  No  apparent 
necessity  can  compel  churches  or  denominations 
into  co-operation  where  the  spirit  of  love  is  lacking. 
Never  were  truer  words  spoken  than  those  of  John 
Owen,  one  of  the  greatest  of  Puritan  divines,  when 
he  said,  “I  should  be  very  sorry  that  any  man  living 
should  outgo  me  in  desires  that  all  who  fear  God 
throughout  the  world,  especially  in  these  nations, 
were  of  one  way  as  well  as  of  one  heart.  I know 
that  I desire  it  sincerely.  But  I verily  believe  that 
when  God  shall  accomplish  it,  it  will  be  the  effect 
of  love  and  not  the  cause  of  love.  There  is  not  a 
greater  vanity  in  the  world  than  to  drive  men  into 
a particular  profession  and  then  suppose  that  love 
will  be  the  necessary  outcome  of  it;  to  think  that 
if,  by  sharp  rebukes,  by  cutting,  bitter  expressions, 
they  can  drive  men  into  such  and  such  practices, 
love  will  certainly  ensue.” 

It  would  be  worse  than  useless  for  the  denomina- 
tions to  come  together  in  organic  unity  until  they 
have  so  far  reached  a common  understanding  that 
it  would  be  possible  for  them  to  live  and  labor 
harmoniously  together.  The  situation  that  would 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  83 


result,  if  so  premature  a union  were  effected,  would 
be  as  awkward  as  that  described  by  the  Russian 
fabulist,  Ivan  Kriloff,  in  his  story  of  The  Swan,  the 
Crayfish,  and  the  Pike: 

“A  crayfish,  pike,  and  swan  agreed  one  day 
To  pull  a cartload  all  together; 

So,  harnessed  each  to  his  own  tether. 

They  pull  with  might  and  main! 

Alas!  ’Tis  all  in  vain! 

The  load  seemed  light  enough;  but  in  the  sky 
The  swan  soared  high; 

The  crayfish  always  backward  ran. 

And,  in  the  pond,  the  pike  to  pull  began. 

Which  was  to  blame?  Which  right?  W^  cannot  say; 
But  still  the  cartload  stays  there,  to  this  day!” 

The  largest  contribution  that  any  man  can  make, 
therefore,  to  the  cause  of  Christian  unity  at  this 
stage  in  its  progress  is  the  promotion  of  mutual  ac- 
quaintance, understanding,  and  appreciation  among 
the  divided  communions  of  Christendom.  The  ig- 
norance of  intelligent  men  as  to  the  spirit  and  tenets 
of  other  denominations  than  their  own  is  as  curious 
as  it  is  sad.  There  is  no  ardent  denominationalist 
who  has  not,  at  times,  been  chagrined  at  the  misrep- 
resentation that  his  denomination  has  suffered  at  the 
hand  of  some  sincere  but  ignorant  representative  of 
another  denomination;  and  such  misrepresentation 
tends,  as  much  as  any  other  single  cause,  to  per- 


84  THE  UNION  OF  CHKISTIAN  FORCES 

petuate  the  spirit  of  division.  Every  seminary 
curriculum  ought  to  contain,  together  with  a course 
upon  comparative  religions,  a course  upon  compara- 
tive denominationalism.  Instinctively  we  shrink 
from  what  is  strange  and  unfamiliar,  and  friendship 
is  impossible  without  acquaintance.  We  should 
find  ourselves  much  more  closely  in  agreement  with 
those  of  other  Christian  bodies  if  only  we  fully 
understood  them.  The  Talmud  says:  “Walking  on 
the  mountains  one  day  I saw  a form  which  I took  to 
be  a beast;  coming  nearer  I saw  it  was  a man; 
approaching  nearer  still  I found  it  was  my  brother!” 
We  never  can  understand  our  neighbor  until  we  get 
his  point  of  view.  Standing  by  his  side  and  looking 
at  truth  from  his  angle,  it  is  marvelous  how  reason- 
able his  views  appear.  Again  and  again,  in  the 
reports  of  the  Continuation  Committee  Conferences, 
lately  held  in  the  Orient,  stress  is  laid  upon  the  im- 
portance of  mutual  acquaintance  and  the  mutual 
esteem  and  understanding  that  flow  from  it;  as  at 
the  China  National  Convention  at  Shanghai,  where 
one  of  the  resolutions  called  for  “the  fresh  study  by 
all  Christians  of  the  faith  and  order  held  by  those 
who  differ  from  them,  in  order  to  promote  cordial 
mutual  understanding;  and  the  holding  of  local 
conferences  from  time  to  time  for  the  discussion  of 
the  important  subject  of  Christian  unity. 


* The  Continuation  Conferences  in  Asia,  p.  329. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  85 


Many  influences  to-day  are  drawing  the  churches 
together.  Among  these  must  be  counted  the  fuller 
light  that  is  being  thrown  upon  the  history  and 
origin  of  the  Christian  bodies.  An  impartial  study 
of  Christian  history  is  a great  destroyer  of  both 
pride  and  prejudice.  It  will  destroy  pride,  because 
no  perfect  church  is  discovered  anywhere  in  the 
record.  The  earliest  church-members  were  charged 
with  grievous  sins  in  the  writings  of  their  leaders. 
There  are  few  churches  which  have  not  been  perse- 
cutors in  their  turn,  and  those  not  employing  the 
carnal  weapons  of  fire  and  sword  have  been  guilty 
of  misrepresentation  and  bitter  controversy.  On  the 
other  hand  it  will  destroy  prejudice,  because  the 
story  of  every  church  is  fragrant  with  the  spirit  of 
self-sacrifice  and  adorned  by  noble  lives  that  have 
been  lived  within  its  fellowship.  All  modern  lines 
of  spiritual  descent  are  seen  to  converge  in  the  first 
century;  all  the  divided  branches  of  the  Church 
inherit  the  tradition  of  the  unbroken  unity  of  the 
first  disciples  of  the  Lord.  All  modern  communions 
claim  as  their  own  the  great  leaders  of  the  early 
centuries.  Christ’s  presence  has  been  manifest 
in  every  church  and  in  every  age.  The  study  of 
history,  therefore,  wonderfully  softens  asperity. 
Viewed  from  a distance  remote  from  the  occasions 
of  division  and  strife,  the  causes  of  controversy  lose 
their  sharp  angles:  distinctions,  once  seen  in  bold 


86 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


relief,  melt  into  one  another  in  the  mellow  light  of 
time.  Many  a divisive  theory  has  been  proved  to 
be  untenable  as  the  results  of  historical  study  have 
become  more  accurate. 

Modern  scholarship,  as  applied  also  to  the  study 
of  the  Bible,  makes  strongly  for  Christian  unity. 
It  reveals  in  a stronger  light  the  unity  that  pre- 
vailed in  the  primitive  Church,  and  upon  how  broad 
a basis  it  rested.  The  unity  of  the  first  disciples  was 
evidently  founded,  not  upon  identity  of  theological 
belief,  for  there  was  more  than  one  school  of  thought 
in  the  Church  of  the  apostles,  nor  upon  uniformity  in 
church  polity,  since  every  form  of  organization  may 
find  its  prototype  in  apostolic  times,  nor  upon  simi- 
larity in  forms  of  worship,  for,  side  by  side  with  the 
freest  expression  of  religious  emotion,  fragments 
of  liturgy  and  creed  are  found  embedded  in  the  in- 
spired writings,  but  upon  loyalty  to  the  one  Lord 
of  the  Church,  and  on  fidelity  to  the  cause  of  his 
kingdom  on  earth.  It  was  “unity  of  the  Spirit  in 
the  bond  of  peace,”  unity  amid  diversity,  and  com- 
patible with  the  fullest  liberty  of  development.  It 
consisted  in  no  hard-and-fast  mechanical  uniformity 
of  method  imposed  by  heaven  according  to  a pre- 
arranged plan,  but  was  the  outgrowth  of  experience 
and  the  instrument  of  efficiency.  As  the  method  of 
the  early  Church  was  plastic  and  adapted  to  the 
particular  conditions  with  which  it  dealt,  so  there  is 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  87 


nothing  in  God’s  Word  that  forbids  further  adapta- 
tions of  method  to  new  conditions  as  they  appear. 
Its  emphasis  is  upon  unity,  and  not  upon  the  means 
by  which  unity  shall  be  secured;  and  he  who  sacri- 
fices the  end  to  a mistaken  loyalty  to  a method  is 
false  to  the  spirit  of  the  Bible.  We  are  beginning 
to  see  that  the  great  laws  of  social  evolution  that 
shaped  the  institutions  of  Old  Testament  times 
apply  also  to  the  period  of  the  formation  of  the 
Church  and  to  its  history  through  the  ages,  and  that 
many  of  the  incidents  of  that  history  and  of  the 
particular  forms  that  characterized  it  are  accidental 
and  not  essential. 

The  older  view  of  the  Bible,  with  its  doctrine  of  a 
mechanical  and  verbal  inspiration  and  a completed 
revelation,  has  tended  to  perpetuate  the  divisions 
of  Christendom:  the  modern  view  that  the  Scrip- 
tures contain  the  record  of  a progressive  revelation, 
communicated  through  the  experiences  of  men 
dominated  by  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God, 
promises  to  be  among  the  most  potent  of  future 
influences  making  for  the  unity  of  the  Church.  The 
temptation  of  those  who  held  the  earlier  view  was  to 
attempt  to  harmonize  the  various  conceptions  of 
truth  presented  in  the  New  Testament,  to  abstract 
from  each  its  points  of  distinction  and  individuality, 
and  to  “conventionalize”  them  into  a single  pattern 
or  summary  of  doctrine  to  serve  as  a standard  of 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


orthodoxy  for  all  time.  There  could  be  little  room 
for  differences  of  conviction  as  to  either  doctrine  or 
polity  within  a Church  dominated  by  such  a method. 
Naturally  those  who  could  not  subscribe  to  the 
standards  were  forced  out  of  the  Church.  The 
modern  view,  which  recognizes  a development  of 
doctrine  within  the  New  Testament,  and  differences 
of  conception  among  the  leaders  of  the  early  Church, 
finds  larger  room  for  variations  of  belief  within  the 
Church  to-day,  and  for  a continued  development 
within  it,  in  both  doctrine  and  polity,  under  the  guid- 
ance of  the  Spirit  of  God.  God  has  not  made  here 
and  there,  only,  a revelation  of  himself  to  man. 
Such  revelations  are  not  confined  to  particular  ages, 
nor  to  a single  collection  of  books,  nor  are  they  re- 
stricted to  a single  method.  God  is  continually 
revealing  himself  and  his  purposes,  and  in  every  suc- 
ceeding age  more  fully  and  clearly,  as  men  are  better 
able  to  receive  them.  “God,  having  of  old  time 
spoken  unto  the  fathers  in  the  prophets  by  divers 
portions  and  in  divers  manners,”  hath  in  these  days 
spoken  unto  us,  who,  like  the  apostles  and  the 
prophets  of  old,  may  enjoy  the  influences  of  his 
indwelling  Spirit.  To  the  Christian  consciousness 
may  come  to-day  new  truths  that  shall  develop  new 
forms  through  which  they  shall  express  themselves. 
We  have  a right  to  trust  the  guidance  of  that  Spirit 
of  God  who  is  to  lead  the  disciples  of  Jesus  into  all 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  89 

the  truth.  And  while  the  old  light  will  not  be 
quenched,  but  made  incomparably  brighter  by  the 
new  illumination,  it  is  conceivable  that  new  revela- 
tions may  compel  us  to  discard  some  of  the  old  forms 
and  formulas,  old  polities  and  dogmas,  and  con- 
struct new.  “The  Holy  Spirit,”  writes  Professor 
Herrmann,  “works  synthetically,  not  analytically, 
and  the  composition  of  the  New  Testament  clearly 
shows  this.  If  Christians  seek  unity  by  means  of 
unalterable  doctrine,  then  they  must  give  up  the 
authority  of  the  New  Testament.  For  in  the 
New  Testament  there  is  no  unalterable  doctrine 
which  embraces  the  whole  scheme  of  Christian 
thought.  ...  It  is  no  imperfection,  it  is  rather  an 
excellence,  and  thoroughly  as  it  should  be,  that  the 
epistles  of  the  New  Testament  are  messages  for 
definite  circumstances,  and  not  contributions  to  a 
doctrinal  system  which  shall  be  valid  to  all  eternity.”^ 
Favorable  to  the  cultivation  of  such  a spirit  of-*^ 
fellowship  as  is  essential  to  the  fullest  unity  of  the 
Church,  is  the  clearer  recognition  of  the  measure 
of  unity  that  already  prevails  among  Christians. 
Members  of  a single  denomination  constitute  a 
community  that  is  bound  together  by  all  they 
jointly  possess.  There  is  a sense  of  likeness,  a 
unanimity  of  thought,  among  its  constituents;  a 
realization  of  group  individuality  that  arises  from 


1 Communion  with  God,  p.  9, 


90 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


participation  in  the  same  convictions  and  ac- 
tivities, and  in  the  same  memories  and  hopes. 
This  group  individuality  rests  in  a sense  of  the 
continuity  of  the  past,  now  stored  in  memory,  and 
of  the  future,  now  conceived  in  terms  of  hope  and 
expectation,  with  the  present,  all  within  a single 
consciousness.  Such  a condition  of  oneness  charac- 
terizes every  separate  body  of  Christian  people. 
Similarly  ail  Christian  churches  are  bound  together 
in  a larger  and  more  inclusive  individuality,  sharing 
with  one  another  a vast  fund  of  Christian  truth  more 
fundamental  than  their  differences,  and  the  mem- 
ories, hopes,  and  expectations  that  belong  to  Chris- 
tians of  every  name.  There  is  a “communion  of  the 
saints”  that  is  very  real  in  spite  of  all  differences 
among  them.  There  is  a “Holy  Catholic  Church” 
that  transcends  all  artificial  boundaries,  whose  uni- 
fying elements  are  a common  vital  energy,  a general 
history,  and  a mutual  ambition  for  the  future.  How 
rich  is  the  heritage  of  this  community,  how  vigor- 
ous this  interpenetrating  life,  and  how  harmonious 
its  aims!  And  the  strongest  of  all  the  bonds  that 
unite  those  that  enter  into  it  is  loyalty  to  one  Lord 
and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ.  The  same  sun  shines 
in  London  and  in  New  York:  it  is  not  the  same 
sunshine,  but  it  is  the  same  sun ; and  every  eye  that 
gazes  upon  it,  and  every  frame  that  feels  its  warmth,  is 
thereby  united  with  every  other  over  the  whole  earth. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  91 


There  is  a unity  of  Christian  scholarship  that  ig- 
nores denominational  divisions  and  seeks  only  the 
truth — the  whole  truth.  “The  lovers  of  the  truth 
are  one.”  The  modern  Revised  Bible  in  English, 
as  Dr.  Schaff  has  pointed  out,  is  a noble  monument 
to  a united  Christian  scholarship,  representing,  as 
it  does,  the  harmonious  labors,  through  fourteen 
years,  of  about  one  hundred  British  and  American 
scholars  of  various  affiliations — Episcopalians,  In- 
dependents, Presbyterians,  Methodists,  Baptists, 
Friends,  and  Unitarians. 

There  is  already  a degree  of  doctrinal  unity  among 
the  great  evangelical  bodies  of  Christendom.  Differ 
as  they  may  in  dogma  and  theology,  they  agree  in 
the  fundamental  articles  of  faith  that  are  necessary  to 
salvation.  All  believe  in  the  one  Father  in  heaven, 
in  the  one  Lord  and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ,  all  accept 
the  same  Bible,  and  can  repeat  together  the  Apostles’ 
Creed.  There  is  also  a devotional  unity : all  worship 
the  same  God,  revealed  in  Christ;  all  pray  together 
in  the  words  taught  them  by  their  Master,  and  sur- 
round the  same  throne  of  grace.  In  sacred  song 
they  unite  hearts  and  voices  in  the  great  hymns  of 
the  Church  universal,  by  whomsoever  they  may  have 
been  written,  whether  it  be  “Rock  of  Ages,”  by 
Toplady,  the  Calvinist;  or  “Jesus,  Lover  of  My 
Soul,”  by  Wesley,  the  Methodist;  or  “In  the  Cross 
of  Christ  I Glory,”  by  Bowring,  the  Unitarian;  or 


92 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


“Hark!  hark,  my  soul!”  by  Faber,  the  Roman 
Catholic. 

There  is  also  an  ethical  unity.  All  revere  the  same 
qualities  of  Christian  character,  though  they  may 
arrange  them  in  different  orders  of  precedence.  All 
cultivate  the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  as  defined  by  the 
apostle,  and  acknowledge  Jesus  as  the  model  Man. 
All  accept  the  Ten  Commandments  as  interpreted 
by  Jesus  and  believe  the  whole  law  to  be  fulfilled 
in  love  to  God  and  neighbor.  Books  on  Christian 
ethics  are  not  dependent  for  their  value  upon  the 
denominational  creed  of  their  authors,  but  upon  the 
fidelity  with  which  they  represent  the  spirit  and 
teaching  of  Jesus  and  reflect  the  contents  of  the 
Christian  consciousness. 

There  is  unity,  moreover,  in  the  forms  of  activity 
to  which  Christian  charity  incites.  “Mrs.  Bar- 
bauld” — I quote  from  James  Freeman  Clarke — 
“has  a little  apologue  to  show  that  charity,  or  love 
to  man,  is  the  same  thing  in  all  sects  and  churches. 
A mother  is  walking  with  her  little  boy  on  Sunday 
in  the  streets  of  a large  city.  The  street  is  filled 
with  people  who  turn  into  different  churches, — some 
into  the  Established  Church,  some  into  the  different 
chapels.  And  the  little  boy  wonders  why,  since 
they  have  the  same  Master,  they  should  go  in  such 
different  directions.  But  when  the  services  are 
over,  and  the  people  are  on  their  way  home,  a man 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OP  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  93 


falls  in  the  street  with  a sudden  attack  of  illness; 
and  then  a Presbyterian  runs  and  lifts  him  from  the 
ground,  a Methodist  runs  for  a doctor,  a Baptist 
gets  water  and  bathes  his  forehead;  and  the  mother, 
turning  to  her  little  boy,  says,  ‘You  see,  my  child, 
that  though  their  modes  of  worship  are  different, 
their  charity  is  the  same.’  ” Men  separate  for  their 
services  but  unite  for  service. 

Finally,  there  is  unity  in  the  conception  of  the 
fundamental  aim  and  purpose  of  the  Church  that 
is  held  by  all  branches  of  it.  All  would  agree  that 
the  function  of  the  Church  is  the  establishment 
upon  earth  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  defined  as  the 
rule  of  God  in  the  hearts  of  men.  A social  state  in 
which  all  men  live  as  children  of  the  Father  in  heaven, 
and  brethren  one  of  another,  is  the  dream  that  all 
communions  cherish  in  common.  Differ  as  they 
may,  the  united  desire  of  all  the  churches  is  to  infuse 
into  men  the  spirit  of  the  Christ  until  it  transforms 
all  hearts,  transfigures  all  human  institutions,  and 
redeems  man  and  society.  Not  in  the  fact  that 
“we  are  all  trying  to  get  to  the  same  place  here- 
after,” as  is  so  often  fatuously  said,  but  in  the  fact 
that  we  are  all  living  together  in  the  same  place  here, 
and  that  it  is  not  now  a satisfactory  place  to  live  in, 
lies  the  basis  for  unity  of  program  and  action  for  the 
Church.  Men  may  conceive  that  separate  heavens 
will  be  provided  hereafter,  but  there  is  no  question 


94 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


that  the  fates  of  men  are  bound  up  together  here 
where 


“Rich  men  hate  the  poor,  who  curse  the  rich, 

Who  agonize  together,  rich  and  poor, 

Over  and  under  in  the  social  spasm 
And  crisis  of  the  ages.” 

There  is  very  general  agreement  that  if  the  world  is 
to  be  made  over  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  it  must  be 
by  all  men  of  good-will  working  together. 

Such  a conception  of  the  mission  of  the  Church 
forms  the  basis  of  a union  immediately  possible,  and 
suggests  the  means  by  which  a unity  still  more  com- 
plete may  be  achieved.  Union  of  effort  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  practical  program  of  the 
Church  may  not  only  be  undertaken  at  once,  but 
will  open  the  way  for  other  forms  of  co-operation 
and  federation  hardly  conceivable  at  present. 
Absolutely  nothing  counts  in  Christendom  but 
Christlikeness : that  alone  is  essence;  the  remainder 
is  accident.  When  Christians  thoroughly  appreciate 
this  and  accept  it  with  all  its  consequences,  they  will 
be  willing  to  agree  also  that  all  that  helps  the  de- 
velopment of  Christlikeness  in  men  and  nations 
should  be  approved  and  accepted,  and  that  that 
which  is  discovered  to  advance  it  most  should  be 
adopted  by  all.  In  proportion  as  the  efforts  of 
Christian  men  the  world  over  are  directed,  not  to 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  95 

the  building  up  of  particular  institutions,  at  the 
expense,  it  may  be,  of  others,  or  to  the  formulation 
of  creeds,  but  to  doing  the  things  that  Jesus  came 
to  do,  to  lifting  up  the  lives  of  men,  in  that  propor- 
tion denominational  differences  will  sink  into  in- 
significance as  unworthy  the  place  they  have  occu- 
pied in  modern  thought.  “All  classes  of  Chris- 
tians,” said  David  Livingstone,  “find  that  sectarian 
rancor  soon  dies  out  when  they  are  working  to- 
gether for  the  real  heathen.” 

Here,  at  least,  is  a platform  upon  which  all  Chris- 
tians can  meet.  We  do  not  need  to  wait  until  we 
worship  together  before  we  labor  as  one.  There  is 
nothing  that  so  promotes  mutual  acquaintance, 
understanding,  and  esteem  as  co-operation  in  a com- 
mon task.  Said  the  head  of  a great  industry,  after 
some  months  of  work  upon  the  board  of  directors  of 
a philanthropic  society  among  whom  were  some  of  his 
own  workmen,  “These  workingmen  are  a fine  lot: 
it  is  a pleasure  to  know  them.  When  they  come 
to  me  in  future  to  discuss  some  matter  of  work  and 
wages  I shall  feel  quite  differently  about  it,  now  that 
we  have  become  really  acquainted.”  Union  in 
unselfish  service  is  the  shortest  road  to  fellowship. 
In  so  far  as  Christian  men  labor  together  to  alleviate 
poverty,  to  protect  the  life  of  youth,  to  heal  the  sick, 
and  to  minister  to  all  the  needs  of  men,  they  will 
find  themselves  knit  together  by  bonds  of  sympathy 


96 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


SO  close  that  no  differences  in  creed  will  be  permitted 
to  break  them,  and  the  way  will  be  opened  for  co- 
operation in  every  form  of  service  in  which  the 
Church  can  engage,  and  for  fellowship  in  worship. 
The  federation  of  Christian  forces  in  the  field  of 
social  service  is  the  first  step  in  the  direction  of 
organic  unity.  If  such  federation  is  impossible, 
it  is  futile  to  hope  for  something  closer  and  more 
exacting  still.  Programs  of  church  unity  that 
begin  with  the  attempt  to  secure  agreement  in 
doctrine  and  polity,  and  that  have  no  patience  for 
the  slower  processes  of  education  through  co- 
operation in  practical  tasks,  are  doomed  to  failure. 
Mutual  acquaintance,  understanding,  and  esteem 
must  precede  any  form  of  corporate  unity,  and  these 
are  secured  best  through  co-operation  in  specific 
endeavors. 

The  influences  making  to-day  for  a better  under- 
standing among  the  churches  are  many,  the  points 
of  attachment  are  multiplying  every  year;  but  the 
process  of  the  unification  of  Christendom  will  not 
progress  faster  than  does  the  increase  of  love. 
Denominations,  like  metals,  fuse  only  when  at  white 
heat.  There  is  a story  of  certain  bridge-builders 
who  were  engaged  in  constructing  the  two  halves 
of  the  single  arch  that  was  to  span  a river.  From 
either  side  of  the  river  they  labored  simultaneously, 
building  out  from  the  great  piers  on  opposite  banks 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  97 


the  two  arms  of  the  bridge  that  were  to  meet  in  the 
middle.  The  day  came  when,  at  nightfall,  the  last 
truss  and  girder  were  put  into  place,  but  to  their 
dismay  the  plates  of  the  bridge  were  several  inches 
apart  and  would  not  meet.  But  the  next  morning 
the  sun  rose  above  the  horizon  and,  as  it  neared  the 
zenith,  poured  its  warm  rays  upon  all  below;  and 
the  foreman,  walking  out  upon  the  bridge,  found 
that  the  two  great  arms  of  the  arch  had  expanded 
until  they  touched  each  other  and  were  easily 
riveted  together.  While  coldness  of  heart  drives  us 
apart,  the  warmth  of  Christian  love  thus  draws  us 
together.  The  greatest  hindrance  to  unity  is  lack 
of  the  Christ  spirit.  Selfishness  is  always  divisive. 
‘T  didn’t  get  that  family  to  come  to  us,”  a good 
woman  was  heard  to  say,  “but  one  thing  is  certain, 
— they  will  never  go  to  the  other  church!”  Such 
a spirit  would  delay  the  unity  of  the  Church  until 
the  day  of  judgment!  But  when  the  churches  are 
possessed  of  the  spirit  of  John  the  Baptist,  when  he 
said  of  his  Master,  “He  must  increase,  but  I must 
decrease,”  essential  Church  unity  is  already  achieved. 

Such  a spirit  of  sacrifice  is  contagious:  it  spreads 
. from  heart  to  heart.  “As  in  water  face  answereth 
to  face,  so  the  heart  of  man  to  man.”  The  cause  of 
Christian  unity  waits  for  the  church  that  shall  first 
have  the  courage  to  lose  its  life  for  Christ’s  sake  and 
the  gospel’s;  and  if  this  spirit  be  there,  such  a church, 
7 


98 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


according  to  the  promise,  far  from  losing  its  life,  will 
find  it  unto  life  eternal.  When  all  churches  shall  be 
willing  thus  to  lose,  all  shall  gain,  and  the  cause  of 
the  Kingdom  will  go  forward  with  leaps  and  bounds. 
There  is  a legend  in  the  Talmud  of  two  brothers  who 
owned  in  common  a field  upon  the  site  on  which 
King  Solomon  later  built  the  first  Temple  at  Jerusa- 
lem. One  night,  so  the  story  runs,  the  younger  of 
the  brothers  said,  “My  brother  has  a wife  and 
children  to  support,  while  I have  no  one  to  care  for 
but  myself.  I will  go  into  the  harvest  field  and  take 
some  of  the  sheaves  of  grain  that  fall  to  me  and  put 
them  with  my  brother’s  sheaves  without  his  knowl- 
edge, that  he  may  have  sufiicient  to  provide  for  those 
he  loves.”  On  the  same  night  the  other  thought, 
“God  has  blessed  me  with  wife  and  children,  while 
my  brother  lives  alone.  I will  arise  and  take  of  my 
shocks  of  grain  and  lay  them  with  my  brother’s 
share  that  he  may  be  comforted  in  his  loneliness.” 
Thus,  in  the  morning,  to  their  surprise,  each  found  his 
share  undiminished.  The  next  night  each  repeated 
his  kind  deed  and  with  the  same  result.  On  the 
third  night  both  brothers  determined  to  watch, 
and,  to  their  mutual  surprise,  they  met  in  the  middle 
of  the  field,  each  laden  with  his  golden  sheaves. 
And  God  said  of  the  spot  where  they  embraced, 
“This  is  the  holiest  spot  I know:  here  I will  build 
my  holy  Temple.” 


GROWTH  OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNITY  99 


The  cultivation  of  such  a spirit  of  love  ought  to 
be  possible  within  the  Church,  for  love  is  the  essence 
of  religion.  Religion  is  social  comradeship.  It  has, 
indeed,  been  said  that,  as  a matter  of  fact,  religion 
has  exercised  a divisive  influence  in  history  and 
has  served  to  keep  men  apart.  So  a superficial 
reading  of  history  might  seem  to  indicate.  But 
below  the  surface  differences  which  it  has  evoked, 
religion  has  been  the  fundamental  bond  that  has 
held  humanity  together  through  centuries  of  evolu- 
tion, the  living  principle  that  has  made  of  society 
an  organism.  “It  would  be  impossible,”  writes 
Benjamin  Kidd,  “to  conceive  any  economic  or 
political  motive  influencing  the  human  mind  so  con- 
sistently or  continuously,  and  on  so  large  a scale, 
and  producing  over  so  prolonged  a period  results  of 
such  character  and  magnitude  as  that  of  religion. 
It  has  been  said  of  the  synthetic  philosophy  that 
Spencer  found  little  place  in  it  for  systems  of  religion 
except  in  relation  to  our  emancipation  from  the  past. 
But  no  change  which  is  in  progress  in  our  time  as  the 
result  of  the  extending  conception  of  society  is  more 
striking  than  that  which  is  taking  place  in  our  esti- 
mate of  the  influences  in  the  evolution  of  society  of 
the  integrating  conceptions  of  the  human  mind 
hitherto  represented  mainly  in  the  great  systems  of 
religion,  which  are  thus  in  the  deepest  sense  render- 
ing society  organic.  It  would  seem  as  if  it  is  these 


100 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


stones  which  the  builders  of  social  science  in  the  past 
have  rejected  that  we  must  place  now  as  the  head- 
stones of  the  corners.”^  Religion  is  the  vital  prin- 
ciple of  spiritual  evolution,  and  religion  without 
love  ceases  to  be  religious.  The  “spirit  of  Christian 
unity”  is  the  spirit  of  love,  and  it  is  futile  to  imagine 
that  the  unification  of  Christendom  will  ever  be 
consummated  by  any  scheme  of  organization  of 
which  Christian  love  is  not  the  organizing  principle. 
“Beloved,  let  us  love  one  another:  for  love  is  of  God.” 

* Individuaiism  and  After,  p.  27. 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH 
FEDERATION 


Unity  best  promoted  by  effort. — Increase  in  organization. — 
The  Federal  Council  of  Churches  of  Christ  in  America. — 
Work  of  the  Commission  on  Social  Service;  on  Home  and 
Foreign  Missions. — -Local,  State,  and  City  Federations. — 
Duplication  avoided. — A plan  for  co-operation  in  a city. — 
Relation  of  the  Church  to  such  federations. 


CHAPTER  V 


CHKISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION 

The  unity  of  the  Church  will  never  be  thought  out 
until  it  has  been  worked  out.  “Union  will  not 
come,”  said  a missionary  in  China  in  discussing  the 
problem  upon  the  missionary  field,  “simply  by  good- 
will, or  by  doctrinal  adroitness  to  bring  it  about.  It 
will  come  by  those  who  unitedly  love  the  Lord  and 
who  wish  to  serve  him,  working  together.”  The 
results  of  the  repeated  attempts  that  have  been  made 
to  secure  agreement  in  matters  of  faith  and  order 
among  the  divided  bodies  of  Christendom  have  not 
thus  far  proved  very  encouraging,  while  the  results 
of  endeavors  through  co-operation  in  all  forms  of 
Christian  effort  in  which  co-operation  can  be  secured, 
to  reach  the  degree  of  practical  unity  which  is  al- 
ready possible,  are  beginning  to  transform  the  Chris- 
tian world,  and  are  fostering  that  spirit  of  mutual 
appreciation  and  that  common  understanding  which 
are  essential  to  the  achievement  of  any  form  of  union 
more  ideal.  It  is  becoming  increasingly  evident  that 
the  latter  is  the  hopeful  and  logical  order  of  proce- 
dure. Let  the  churches  that  now  find  it  difficult  to 
worship  together  unite  in  some  great  moral  crusade, 
— for  the  eradication  of  white  slavery,  or  for  the 


103 


104 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


restriction  of  the  evils  of  the  liquor  traffic.  Let 
the  churches  that  can  worship  together,  but  that 
cannot  commune  together;  that  can  commune  to- 
gether, but  cannot  dismiss  members  one  to  the  other, 
or  acknowledge  the  validity  of  one  another’s  ad- 
ministration of  the  ordinances,  organize  union 
evangelistic  compaigns,  and  pray  much  together. 
If  the  members  of  the  various  churches  unite  in 
labor  and  in  prayer,  we  need  not  fear  but  that  they 
will  learn  to  love  one  another  better  and  to  see  more 
clearly  eye  to  eye;  and  they  will  find  a way  for  a 
closer  and  ever  closer  union.  The  Apostle  Paul 
bade  the  Ephesian  Christians  endeavor  “to  keep  the 
unity  of  the  Spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace”  until  a 
doctrinal  unity,  sure  to  flow  from  it,  should  be  pos- 
sible,— “till  we  all  attain  unto  the  unity  of  the  faith, 
and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God.”^ 

The  last  decade  has  seen  a remarkable  crystalliza- 
tion of  the  sentiment  of  Christian  unity  in  the  or- 
ganization of  various  forms  of  associations,  national, 
state,  and  local,  through  which  American  Protes- 
tantism may  co-operate  in  common  tasks.  Fore- 
most among  these  is  the  Federal  Council  of  Churches 
of  Christ  in  America,  which  was  organized  in  1905. 
Its  growth  in  influence  and  usefulness  since  its  or- 
ganization has  been  steadily  advancing,  until  it 
includes  at  the  present  date  29  eonstituent  bodies,  . 


1 Eph.  4 : 3,  13  ff. 


CHKISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  105 


to  which  should  be  added  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  which  is  affiliated  through  its  Commissions 
on  Christian  Unity  and  Social  Service.  These  de- 
nominations thus  united  for  service  contain  a total 
of  over  138,000  churches  with  almost  17,000,000 
communicants,  and  include  practically  all  the  larger 
Protestant  bodies.  The  purpose  of  the  Council  is 
well  indicated  in  the  preamble  to  its  Constitution, 
which  states:  “In  the  providence  of  God  the  time 
has  come  when  it  seems  fitting  more  fully  to  manifest 
the  essential  oneness  of  the  Christian  churches  of 
America  in  Jesus  Christ  as  their  divine  Lord  and 
Saviour,  and  to  promote  the  spirit  of  fellowship, 
service,  and  co-operation  among  them.”  The  limi- 
tations of  its  functions  are  specifically  stated  in  the 
constitutional  provision  that  “The  Federal  Council'^ 
shall  have  no  authority  over  the  constituent  bodies 
adhering  to  it;  but  its  province  shall  be  limited  to 
the  expression  of  its  counsel  and  the  recommending 
of  a course  of  action  in  matters  of  common  interest 
to  the  churches,  local  councils,  and  individual  Chris- 
tians. It  has  no  authority  to  draw  up  a common 
creed,  or  form  of  government  or  worship;  or  in  any 
way  to  limit  the  full  autonomy  of  the  Christian^ 
churches  adhering  to  it.”  Yet  under  these  limita- 
tions the  influence  it  has  exerted  upon  its  constituent 
bodies  and  upon  public  opinion  at  large  has  been  a 
steadily  increasing  factor  in  the  religious  and  moral 


106 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


life  of  the  country.  Through  it  the  united  voice  of 
Protestantism  has  been  heard  for  the  first  time  in 
A America,  upon  the  great  moral  questions  that  con- 
j cern  the  welfare  of  all  the  people.  Various  practical 
^ undertakings  have  been  successfully  prosecuted, 
such  as  no  single  denomination  could  have  accom- 
plished alone,  and  great  causes  have  felt  behind 
them,  through  its  activities,  the  united  force  of  the 
churches.  Through  the  Federal  Council,  which 
meets  quadrennially  and  which  consists  of  about 
400  qualified  delegates,  the  degree  of  unity  that 
already  exists  has  been  impressively  exhibited,  and 
the  movement  toward  a still  more  effective  union 
has  been  greatly  stimulated.  The  scope  of  the  work 
of  the  Council  is  indicated  by  the  names  of  the  Com- 
missions through  which  it  is  accomplished,  which  are 
as  follows;  State  and  Local  Federations,  Foreign 
Missions,  Home  Missions,  Religious  Education, 
Social  Service,  Evangelism,  Family  Life,  Sunday 
Observance,  Temperance,  and  Peace  and  Arbitra- 
tion. Three  of  these  Commissions, — those  on  Peace 
and  Arbitration,  Evangelism,  and  Social  Service, — 
employ  executive  secretaries  in  the  direction  of  their 
work.  The  general  work  of  the  Council  is  conducted 
by  a secretary,  the  Rev.  Charles  S.  Macfarland,  with 
an  office  in  New  York,  and  an  associate  secretary, 
the  Rev.  Henry  K.  Carroll,  with  an  oflBce  in  Wash- 
ington. 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  107 


It  is  natural  that  thus  far  the  work  of  the  Com- 
mission on  Social  Service  should  have  been  the  most 
largely  developed  and  fruitful.  In  this  field  all  the 
constituent  denominations,  however  varied  their 
ecclesiastical  polity  and  creedal  statements,  find  a 
platform  upon  which  they  may  stand  and  labor 
together.  At  the  quadrennial  meeting  in  Chicago 
in  1913  the  Council  adopted  as  its  social  creed  a 
comprehensive  statement  so  admirable  and  so  far- 
reaching  in  its  outlook  that  it  will  furnish  for  the 
Christian  forces  of  America  a program  of  social 
service  that  will  sufiice  for  years  to  come.  The 
Council  affirmed  that  the  Churches  must  stand: 

1.  For  equal  rights  and  complete  justice  for  all  men  in  all 
stations  of  life. 

2.  For  the  protection  of  the  family,  by  the  single  stand- 
ard of  purity,  uniform  divorce  laws,  proper  regulation  of 
marriage,  and  proper  housing. 

3.  For  the  fullest  possible  development  for  every  child, 
especially  by  the  provision  of  proper  education  and  recreation. 

4.  For  the  abolition  of  child  labor. 

5.  For  such  regulation  of  the  conditions  of  toil  for  women 
as  shall  safeguard  the  physical  and  moral  health  of  the  com- 
munity. 

6.  For  the  abatement  and  prevention  of  poverty. 

7.  For  the  protection  of  the  individual  and  society  from 
the  social,  economic,  and  moral  waste  of  the  liquor  traffic. 

8.  For  the  conservation  of  health. 

9.  For  the  protection  of  the  worker  from  dangerous  ma- 
chinery, occupational  diseases  and  mortality. 


108 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


10.  For  the  right  of  all  men  to  the  opportunity  for  self- 
maintenance, for  safeguarding  this  right  against  encroach- 
ments of  every  kind,  and  for  the  protection  of  workers  from 
the  hardships  of  enforced  unemployment. 

11.  For  suitable  provision  for  the  old  age  of  the  workers, 
and  for  those  incapacitated  by  injury. 

12.  For  the  right  of  employees  and  employers  alike  to 
organize  for  adequate  means  of  conciliation  and  arbitration 
in  industrial  disputes. 

13.  For  a release  from  employment  one  day  in  seven. 

14.  For  the  gradual  and  reasonable  reduction  of  the  hours 
of  labor  to  the  lowest  practicable  point,  and  for  that  degree  of 
leisiue  for  all  which  is  a condition  of  the  highest  human  life. 

15.  For  a living  wage  as  a minimum  in  every  industry,  and 
for  the  highest  wage  that  each  industry  can  afford. 

16.  For  a new  emphasis  upon  the  application  of  Christian 
principles  to  the  acquisition  and  use  of  property,  and  for  the 
most  equitable  division  of  the  product  of  industry  that  can 
ultimately  be  devised. 

If  the  Council  had  done  no  more  than  to  secure 
the  acceptance  on  the  part  of  the  accredited  repre- 
sentatives of  the  great  Protestant  army  of  a social 
program  so  definite,  constructive,  and  vital  as  this, 
it  would  have  abundantly  justified  its  existence. 
Protestant  Christianity  in  America  has  long  been 
accused  of  indifference  toward  the  social  movement, 
and  to  this  apathy  has  been  ascribed  the  alienation 
of  the  workingman  from  all  forms  of  organized  relig- 
ion. As  the  churches  apply  themselves  seriously 
to  the  task  of  Christianizing  the  world  of  industry. 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  109 


such  a reproach,  in  so  far  as  it  has  been  true,  will  be 
taken  away.  It  is  a great  step  gained  that  there 
should  be  set  before  them  for  their  guidance  such  a 
statement  of  duty  as  this  to  which  the  Christian 
conscience  of  America  can  subscribe. 

The  Commissions  on  Home  Missions  and  Foreign 
Missions  are  in  close  co-operation  with  the  Home 
Missions  and  Foreign  Missions  Councils,  organiza- 
tions of  representatives  of  the  various  denomina- 
tional societies  or  boards  responsible  for  the  conduct 
of  missionary  work.  Through  the  Commission  on 
Peace  and  Arbitration,  the  federated  churches  have 
both  spoken  and  labored  in  the  interest  of  world- 
wide peace  with  a force  that  has  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  the  entire  country.  Lately,  special  efforts 
have  been  made  by  the  Executive  Committee  of  the 
Council  to  safeguard  the  moral  and  religious  inter- 
ests of  the  thousands  of  American  soldiers  and 
sailors.  More  recently  the  work  of  the  Council  has 
assumed  an  international  aspect  in  the  appointment, 
at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  missionaries  in  Japan,  of 
a Commission  on  Relations  with  Japan  for  the  pur- 
pose of  sending  “an  ambassador  of  the  churches  to 
convey  a message  to  the  Japanese  people,  or  the 
Eastern  peoples  in  general,  from  the  Federal  Council, 
as  representing  the  Christian  sentiment  of  America,” 
and  of  extending  “an  invitation  to  some  representa- 
tive of  the  Japanese  people  to  come  to  this  country 


no 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


for  the  same  purpose.”  The  first  half  of  this  object 
has  since  been  achieved  in  the  visit  to  Japan,  early 
in  1915,  of  Dr.  Shailer  Mathews,  President  of  the 
Federal  Council,  and  Prof.  Sidney  L.  Gulick,  as  the 
accredited  representatives  of  American  Protestant 
Christianity.  The  cordial  welcome  given  them,  not 
only  by  the  churches  of  Japan,  but  by  the  highest 
representatives  of  the  government,  local  and 
national,  made  it  possible  for  them  to  render  a 
service  of  great  value  to  the  cause  of  international 
friendship,  and  to  contribute  to  a better  under- 
standing between  the  two  countries.  The  ap- 
pointment of  this  Commission  “to  study  the  entire 
question  of  the  application  of  the  teachings  of  Christ 
to  our  relations  with  Japan,  and  to  promote  such 
influences  and  activities  as  shall  lead  to  the  right 
relationships  between  the  peoples  of  these  two 
nations,”  marks  the  entrance  of  the  Federal  Coun- 
cil into  a new  and  larger  sphere  of  usefulness.  The 
Council  has  now  under  advisement,  also,  the  ques- 
tion of  the  calling  of  a World  Congress  to  consider 
international  relations  from  a Christian  stand- 
point. 

The  latest  expression  of  the  desire  of  the  Federal 
Council  to  promote  the  co-operative  spirit  is  found 
in  its  proposal  of  the  creation  of  a new  “Commission 
on  Federated  Movements.”  For  the  promotion  of 
the  work  of  such  a Commission,  the  Council  lately 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  111 


appointed  the  Rev.  Roy  B.  Guild  as  associate 
secretary.  The  purpose  of  the  proposed  Commis- 
sion is  indicated  in  the  results  of  the  Conference 
held,  by  invitation  of  the  Council,  at  Atlantic  City 
in  June,  1915,  when  about  one  hundred  leaders  of 
denominational  and  interdenominational  organiza- 
tions met  to  formulate  a plan  under  which  the  agen- 
cies they  represent  might  be  brought  into  harmo- 
nious co-operation.  Among  the  eighteen  organiza- 
tions represented  were  the  Federal  Council,  the 
International  Sunday-School  Association,  the  Mis- 
sionary Education  Movement,  the  Young  Men’s 
and  Young  Women’s  Christian  Associations,  the 
Laymen’s  Missionary  Movement,  the  Home  Mis- 
sions Council,  the  Christian  Endeavor  Society,  and 
various  denominational  young  people’s  societies  and 
brotherhoods.  These  organizations  have  been  con- 
ducting their  campaigns,  for  the  most  part,  inde- 
pendently of  one  another,  with  consequent  confu- 
sion, conflict  of  dates,  and  unwise  multiplication  of 
appeals  to  the  churches.  In  accordance  with  the 
recommendations  of  this  Conference,  the  Federal 
Council  will  appoint  the  “Commission  on  Federated 
Movements,”  choosing  its  members  “from  persons 
eminently  identified  with  interdenominational  and 
undenominational  religious  organizations,”  and 
“from  persons  who  have  had  characteristic  expe- 
rience in  state  and  local  city  church  federations.” 


112 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


While  the  Commission  will  have  a purely  advisory 
and  unofficial  relation  to  the  organizations  in  whose 
interest  it  is  formed,  it  will  be  in  a position,  through 
the  cordial  co-operation  on  their  part,  which  appears 
to  be  already  assured,  to  render  a valuable  and  neces- 
sary service  in  the  co-ordination  of  their  activities. 
Its  special  field  will  be  the  study  of  the  history  and 
present  status  of  federative  organizations  of  all 
types,  national,  state,  and  local, — to  determine  the 
most  effective  methods  of  church  co-operation,  and 
in  what  spheres  it  is  immediately  most  possible, — 
the  fostering  of  existing  city  federations,  and  the 
forming  of  such  federations  where  they  are  needed. 

The  formation  of  local  federations  of  churches 
preceded  the  foundation  of  the  Federal  Council,  but 
the  latter  has  greatly  stimulated  such  local  mani- 
festations of  the  spirit  of  co-operation  throughout 
the  land.  At  the  last  report^  there  were  about 
150  such  federations  in  the  country,  of  which  21 
were  state  organizations;  but  the  movement 
spreads  so  rapidly  that  statistics  need  contin- 
ual revision.  County  federations,  particularly  in 
country  districts,  are  furthering  community  sur- 
veys, and  inaugurating  forms  of  co-operation  for 
the  solution  of  the  problems  that  they  disclose. 
State  federations,  under  various  names,  some  of 

* Compiled  under  the  direction  of  the  Commiasion  on  State  and  Local 
Federations  in  1914. 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  113 


them  with  executive  secretaries  giving  their  entire 
time  to  the  work  of  the  organization,  are  fostering 
co-operative  effort  in  city,  town,  and  country,  and 
are  seeking  to  minimize  the  effects  of  over-churching 
and  to  care  for  neglected  districts  wherever  discov- 
ered. Intensive  studies  of  wide  areas  of  the  country 
have  been  made  by  state  federations,  and  the  spirit 
of  denominational  comity,  which  they  express,  is 
gradually  transforming  the  competitive  spirit  into 
one  of  cordial  fellowship  in  service. 

Chaotic  conditions  of  religious  activity  in  the 
larger  cities  are  slowly  giving  way,  where  effective 
federations  under  competent  leadership  have  been 
organized,  before  the  advance  of  a new  program  of 
a united  campaign  for  righteousness.  The  city 
gives  little  heed  to  a single  voice,  however  powerful 
it  may  be,  when  raised  in  protest  against  some 
flagrant  evil ; nor  is  it  greatly  stirred  when  an  entire 
denomination  unites  in  protest;  but  when  churches 
of  every  name  join  forces  and  speak  together,  the 
whole  city  listens  and  the  powers  of  evil  tremble. 
Organized  vice  knows  no  divisive  creeds:  the  saloon 
in  politics  is  neither  Baptist  nor  Methodist.  The 
forces  of  evil  know  how  to  sink  their  differences  in 
times  of  stress,  and  at  the  first  sound  of  battle  they 
unite  for  defense.  The  churches  cannot  postpone 
practical  co-operation  until  their  differences  are  com- 
posed, so  long  as  problems  of  social  justice  cry  for 
8 


114 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


solution,  and  vice  flaunts  itself  unrebuked,  and  a 
conspiracy  of  evil  claims  our  sons  and  daughters, 
and  corrupt  political  forces  threaten  the  foundations 
of  democracy  itself.  The  churches  have  already 
learned  that  they  can  trust  one  another  sufficiently 
to  unite  to  labor  for  law-enforcement  and  the  en- 
thronement of  justice  and  righteousness  in  social 
life;  and  with  every  successful  attempt  to  work  to- 
gether in  such  enterprises  there  is  secured  added 
confidence  and  courage. 

The  strength  of  such  union  is  evident  not  merely 
in  protest  and  suppression;  it  is  more  effective  still 
in  the  promotion  of  practical  measures  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  positive  tasks  of  the  Church. 
Through  practical  co-operation  in  action,  the  churches 
are  discovering  that  in  the  essential  things  they  al- 
ready stand  together  and  that  they  can  work  in 
Christian  love  for  many  ends  without  loss  or  sacri- 
fice to  any.  A new  conception  of  the  interdepen- 
dence of  the  churches  is  appearing.  As  in  the  feder- 
ated unity  of  the  body  which  Paul  describes, 
“Whether  one  member  suffereth,  all  the  members 
suffer  with  it;  or  one  member  is  honored,  all  the 
members  rejoice  with  it,”  so  what  harms  a single 
church  in  the  community  injures  all  the  churches; 
and  any  accession  of  strength  to  any  church  inures 
to  the  benefit  of  the  rest.  So  long  as  the  function  of 
the  Church  was  conceived  to  be  exclusively  remedial. 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  115 


and  the  numerical  addition  of  adherents  was  the  sole 
test  of  its  success,  there  may  have  been  some  excuse 
for  envy  and  competition;  but  if  it  is  also  the  func- 
tion of  the  Church  to  create  an  atmosphere  wherein 
purity  and  integrity  and  unselfishness  may  flourish, 
and  in  which  vice  shall  wither  and  die,  then  the 
larger  the  contribution  of  a single  church  to  the 
result,  the  more  the  churches  at  large  will  profit. 

The  task  of  the  modern  city  church  is  so  exact- 
ing, aUd  the  failure  of  any  single  communion  to  cope 
in  any  adequate  manner  with  the  problems  that 
press  upon  it  in  crowded  centers  is  so  apparent,  that 
the  necessity  of  united  effort  is  imperative.  To 
endure  the  waste  of  competition  and  of  “overlap- 
ping,” and  the  neglect  of  opportunity  and  duty 
through  “overlooking”  that  is  consequent  upon  it, 
is  disloyal  to  the  Lord  of  the  Church.  In  the  face 
of  the  need  of  the  world,  the  luxury  of  isolation  is 
maintained  at  an  unwarrantable  expense.  We  are 
merely  scratching  the  surface  of  opportunity  in  the 
larger  cities.  The  dense  masses  of  foreign-speaking 
peoples  have  hardly  been  touched  by  Protestant 
influences.  The  task  of  instilling  American  and 
Christian  ideals  into  the  immigrant  population 
must  not  be  left  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Church: 
Protestantism  also  is  obliged  to  make  its  contribu- 
tion. And  it  is  worse  than  folly,  when  the  task  and 
the  opportunity  are  so  large  and  pressing,  for  indi- 


116 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


vidual  churches  or  denominations  to  enter  the  field 
without  consultation  with  one  another,  or  under- 
standing what  others  are  attempting.  If  a division 
of  the  foreign  mission  field  into  spheres  of  responsi- 
bility and  influence  is  needed,  such  a division  is  as 
clearly  necessary  in  all  unoccupied  fields  in  the  home 
land.  In  many  instances,  efforts  for  the  evangeliza- 
tion of  foreign-speaking  peoples  may  be  undertaken 
by  various  denominations  working  together,  with  a 
far  better  prospect  of  success  than  would  attend  the 
work  of  a single  denomination.  If  it  is  unwise  to 
carry  the  minutiae  of  our  denominational  differences 
into  China,  is  it  wise  to  inflict  them  upon  the  Chinese 
in  America? 

It  is  a hopeful  sign  of  a new  day  that  five  denomina- 
tions are  co-operating  in  the  support  and  direction  of 
the  First  Chinese  Evangelical  Church  of  Chicago.  In 
1911  there  was  organized  upon  the  Pacific  Coast  the 
Oriental  Workers’  Association,  to  labor  among  the 
Chinese,  Japanese,  and  Koreans,  including,  within  its 
membership.  Baptists,  Methodists,  Disciples,  Con- 
gregationalists,  Presbyterians,  Cumberland  Presby- 
terians, Episcopalians,  and  Friends.  One  of  the 
first  results  of  the  work  of  the  Standing  Committee 
was  the  transfer,  with  the  cordial  approval  of  both 
the  denominations  interested,  of  a mission  from  the 
Congregationalists  to  the  Presbyterians,  the  former 
having  no  American  church  in  the  city  in  which  the 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  117 


mission  was  located.  The  entire  enterprise  of  city 
missions  is  an  inviting  field  for  interdenominational 
co-operation,  as  is  illustrated  by  the  activities  of 
the  Chicago  Co-operative  Council  of  City  Missions 
which  has  recently  been  established  to  further 
the  following  aims : the  evangelization  of  the 
foreign  population  of  the  city,  the  maintenance 
of  churches  in  the  central  portion  of  the  city,  and 
the  establishment  of  new  churches  in  the  residential 
sections. 

It  is  a function  of  church  federation  not  merely 
to  unite  the  churches,  but  to  separate  them,  to 
extricate  them  from  the  entanglements  and  embar- 
rassments incident  to  the  competitive  method,  or 
lack  of  method,  that  has  prevailed  in  the  past.  A 
vast  amount  of  duplicative  work  may  be  avoided 
through  the  assignment  to  each  federated  church  of 
a particular  district  or  parish  for  which  it  shall  accept 
responsibility.  Under  such  a plan  an  entire  city 
may  be  included  in  such  areas  of  responsibility, 
each  church  being  assigned  a district  within  easy 
reach  of  its  own  building  and,  where  necessary,  a 
supplementary  district  at  a distance.  If  each 
church  will  then  canvass  its  district  and  maintain  a 
directory,  constantly  revised,  that  will  account  for 
the  denominational  preference  and  church  attend- 
ance of  each  individual  within  it,  caring  itself  for 
the  unattached  and  indifferent,  and  assigning  to 


118 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


churches  of  their  own  faith  all  who  express  a par- 
ticular denominational  preference,  such  a plan  will 
go  far  to  solve  the  problem  both  of  “overlapping” 
and  “overlooking”  within  the  city.  When  the 
Church  knows  the  people  within  its  district  as  in- 
timately as  the  politician  knows  the  voters  in  his 
I ward  or  precinct,  it  will  be  better  able  to  serve  and 
* to  win  them.  System  saves  time  and  strength  and 
makes  for  increased  efficiency  at  a lower  cost.  Hap- 
hazard methods  are  as  inadequate  in  religion  as  in 
business.  Such  a plan  makes  it  possible  for  each 
church  to  conduct  an  intensive  survey  of  its  dis- 
trict, and  to  acquaint  itself  with  the  moral  conditions 
and  needs  of  the  people  who  dwell  within  it,  and  thus 
to  render  a more  intelligent  and  helpful  ministry. 
If  a moral  reform  needs  to  be  inaugurated  within 
the  district,  here  is  the  instrument  ready  to  accom- 
plish it.  A diffused  and  general  ministry  that 
extends  in  about  equal  proportions  over  an  entire 
city  is  not  likely  to  be  so  effective  for  good  as  such 
a specialized  ministry  to  a particular  district  thus 
thoroughly  understood.  Under  such  a plan,  also, 
each  church  represents  all  the  churches  and  is 
responsible  to  all  the  churches  for  the  administra- 
tion of  the  district  which  it  has  accepted,  and  feels 
behind  it  the  power  of  the  united  Christian  forces 
of  the  city  and  the  encouragement  of  that  added  com- 
munity respect  that  always  results  when  denomina- 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  119 


tions  are  found  working  together  in  such  actual 
unity. 

The  opportunities  for  co-operation  through  federa- 
tion are  almost  without  limit,  though  the  direction  it 
takes  in  particular  localities  is  determined  by  local 
needs  and  circumstances.  Christian  education  is 
a fruitful  field  for  united  action,  as  is  the  promotion 
of  missionary  instruction  and  interest  and,  to  a some- 
what narrower  extent,  evangelistic  effort.  But  the 
field  within  which  the  churches  can  combine  with 
the  least  probability  of  friction  is  that  of  construc- 
tive social  service.  Through  federation  the  churches 
may  make  a united  impression  upon  the  community 
in  the  interest  of  every  movement  that  strives  for 
human  betterment,  and  furnish  substantial  aid  to 
every  program  of  reform.  The  churches  when 
federated  may  initiate  and  influence  the  course  of 
legislation  as  single  churches  cannot,  and  may  be 
rallied  to  the  support  of  charities  and  philanthropies, 
to  the  cause  of  juvenile  protection,  public  play- 
grounds, and  social  centers;  thus  federated  Chris- 
tianity may  lead  all  the  forces  that  labor  for  the 
welfare  of  humanity. 

It  has  been  said  that  such  federal  union  is  oppor- 
tunism in  religion,  and  it  is  probably  true.  It 
takes  the  half  loaf  that  is  immediately  available 
and  makes  the  most  of  it.  It  asks  for  no  compromise 
of  principle  or  surrender  of  ecclesiastical  claims  on 


120 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


the  part  of  the  churches  that  enter  it,  nor  does  it 
seek  to  commit  any  one  of  its  constituent  churches 
to  co-operation  in  any  enterprise  undertaken  by  the 
federation  where  such  co-operation  appears  inex- 
pedient or  impossible.  Any  church  is  free  to  with- 
draw from  such  a federation  at  its  pleasure,  or  to 
withhold  co-operation  in  particular  instances  while 
retaining  its  membership. 

State  federations  are,  like  the  Federal  Council, 
associations  of  denominations,  while  county  and 
city  federations  may  be  composed  either  of  delegates 
from  denominations  or  from  individual  churches. 
There  is,_  however,  no  formal  or  official  connection 
between  the  Federal  Council  and  the  state  federa- 
tions, or  between  those  of  states  and  the  local  federa- 
tions within  the  states.  Church  Federation  is  a 
general  name  for  groups  of  churches  variously  or- 
ganized, and  stands  for  the  loosest,  freest  form  of 
co-operative  union  possible  in  which  efficiency,  in 
the  particular  kinds  of  activity  contemplated,  can 
be  preserved.  Its  strength  lies  in  its  weakness,  as 
the  bond  of  love  and  fellowship,  and  the  friendship 
that  springs  from  working  together  for  practical 
ends  are  stronger  than  the  compulsion  of  eccle- 
siastical authority.  Such  a form  of  co-operation 
has  decided  limitations : it  is  not  claimed  for  it  that 
it  is  the  ideal  form  of  Christian  unity.  It  was 
forced  upon  the  churches  by  the  immediate  neces- 


CHRISTIAN  UNITY  THROUGH  FEDERATION  121 


sity  of  facing  with  a united  front  their  common 
problems  and  tasks,  because  it  was  the  best  form  and 
method  immediately  possible.  To  have  waited 
for  the  adjustment  of  ecclesiastical  and  theological 
differences,  and  for  the  attainment  of  organic  unity, 
before  attempting  such  tasks  would  have  been  to 
subject  the  cause  of  the  kingdom  of  God  to  irrep- 
arable loss. 

Imperfect  and  incomplete  as  are  all  such  forms  of 
federal  union,  they  are  rendering,  wherever  there  is 
forceful  leadership,  a splendid  service.  Notable 
results  have  been  accomplished  in  many  communi- 
ties. It  is  no  light  thing  that  the  churches  should 
have  discovered  that  they  can  labor  and  pray  to- 
gether, and  speak,  on  occasion,  with  a single  voice. 
Experiments  in  federation  have  drawn  the  churches 
together  and  have  disclosed  the  measure  of  unity 
that  they  already  possess,  and,  by  promoting  the 
spirit  of  Christian  love,  have  pointed  out  the  direc- 
tion from  which  must  come  any  hopeful  plan  of 
closer  fellowship.  Religion  is  a life  of  love : theology 
is  a philosophy.  Religion  dwells  in  the  heart; 
theology  is  of  the  head;  and  the  foundation  of 
unity  lies  below  the  level  at  which  we  do  our 
thinking. 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN 
FORCES  IN  COUNTRY 
AND  VILLAGE 


Increasing  interest  in  social,  economic,  and  religious  aspects 
of  rural  life. — Decline  of  the  country  church. — Rural  condi- 
tions under  special  investigation. — Possibilities  and  responsi- 
bilities of  the  rural  chimch. — Over-churched  conditions. — ■ 
Statistics  concerning  church  competition  in  rural  communi- 
ties.— Fiuther  facts  from  Board  of  Home  Missions  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  (North). — Examples  from  New  York 
and  Vermont. — ^Three  forms  of  federation  proposed  and  dis- 
cussed: church  federation,  the  federated  church,  the  union 
denominational  chiuch. 


CHAPTER  VI 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES  IN  COUNTRY 
AND  VILLAGE 

Among  the  signs  of  the  times  none  is  more  en- 
couraging than  the  awakening  of  a new  sense  of  the 
importance  of,  and  a new  interest  in  the  success  of, 
the  rural  church.  Through  the  report  of  the  Commis- 
sion on  Country  Life,  appointed  by  President  Roose- 
velt, the  attention  of  the  entire  country  was  called 
to  a fresh  consideration  of  the  problems  and  possi- 
bilities of  rural  life.  A new  literature  has  suddenly 
sprung  into  existence  dealing  with  its  social,  eco- 
nomic, and  religious  aspects,  the  effects  of  which 
may  already  be  seen  in  the  rise  of  a more  intelli- 
gent social  consciousness  in  many  a village  and 
hamlet,  and  in  an  increase  of  self-respect  on  the 
part  of  many  a community.  The  facts  are  rapidly 
being  gathered  that  will  form  the  basis  of  plans  and 
programs  for  the  fuller  development  of  the  rich 
resources  of  country  life.  Surveys  and  intensive 
studies  of  particular  communities  reveal  that  the 
conditions  which  prevail  are  not  peculiar  to  any 
single  section,  but  that  the  problem  is  largely  the 
same  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land. 


125 


126 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Among  the  facts  which  have  been  brought  to 
light,  however,  is  that  of  the  gradual  decline  of  the 
country  church.  A wide-spread  indifference  to  the 
Church  is  prevalent  everywhere  in  rural  communi- 
ties. The  percentage  of  the  community  attendant 
upon  the  services  of  the  Church  is  less,  in  general, 
than  ten  or  twenty  years  ago,  and  is  still  decreasing; 
nor  is  the  membership  holding  its  own  in  proportion 
to  the  population.  The  average  salary  of  the 
country  minister,  always  lamentably  inadequate, 
while  it  has  somewhat  increased  in  the  gross  during 
the  last  score  of  years,  is,  as  we  have  already  seen, 
actually  less  in  proportion  to  the  increase  in  the 
cost  of  living  than  at  the  beginning  of  the  period. 
Among  the  ministers  who  serve  country  parishes 
are  to  be  found  many  of  the  most  intelligent,  the 
noblest,  and  most  unselfish  within  the  profession; 
but  the  proportion  of  those  who  possess  the  measure 
of  training  adequate  to  meet  the  exacting  conditions 
under  which  the  modern  minister  must  do  his  work, 
when  the  level  of  general  enlightenment  has  so 
greatly  risen,  has  not  increased.  Discouragement 
and  apathy  are  reported  from  many  quarters. 
The  spectacle  of  churches  deserted,  closed,  and  sold 
at  auction  is  not  uncommon.  The  church,  once  the 
center  of  community  life,  the  one  institution  around 
which  the  varied  interests  of  the  neighborhood 
were  organized,  has  become  too  often  the  occasion 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


127 


of  discord  and  division.  With,  happily,  multitudes 
of  churches  exceptional  enough  to  prove  a rule,  the 
church  of  the  village  and  rural  districts  does  not 
hold  to-day  the  place  in  the  affections  and  loyalty  of 
the  group  to  which  it  seeks  to  minister  that  it  has 
held  in  the  past. 

To  the  problems  that  such  facts  as  these  suggest 
there  has  been  brought  in  recent  years  the  intelli- 
gent consideration  of  a multitude  of  earnest  men. 
The  field  has  been  surveyed  and  the  results  of  study 
have  been  widely  published.  A growing  literature 
is  being  created.  Conferences  of  leaders  in  country 
life  are  becoming  frequent.  Great  universities  that 
minister  to  a country  constituency  have  established 
departments  under  skilled  leadership  which  are 
devoting  themselves  to  the  study  of  conditions,  and 
to  the  dissemination  of  information  and  practical 
suggestions  that  are  leading  to  the  development  of 
the  latent  resources  of  rural  life.  The  period  of 
analysis  is  drawing  to  a close  and  the  adoption  of 
certain  positive  and  constructive  principles  is  be- 
coming apparent. 

In  so  far  as  these  concern  the  Church  it  is  be- 
coming evident  that  the  rural  church  possesses  the 
key  to  the  situation,  occupying  a place  of  vantage 
from  which  it  can  do  more  than  any  other  institu- 
tion to  enrich  and  deepen  the  life  of  the  community, 
and  that,  if  it  is  to  fulfil  its  mission  and  rise  to  its 


128 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


opportunity,  the  outlook,  and  spirit,  and  method  of 
the  church  must  be  changed  to  accord  with  the  needs 
of  the  new  order.  The  rural  church  must  get  closer 
to  the  soil,  must  serve  the  comrnunity  at  more 
points  than  heretofore,  recognizing  with  a greater 
sympathetic  discernment  the  actual  interests  of 
those  whom  it  would  reach,  and  minister  to  these 
with  a wider  intelligence  and  a more  unselfish 
devotion.  Once  more  the  country  church  must 
become  the  community  center,  organizing  about 
itself  as  many  as  possibll  of  the  interests  of  the  social 
group  in  which  it  is  set,  now  so  much  more  diverse 
and  complex  than  formerly.  This  is  even  more 
incumbent  upon  the  church  of  the  open  country 
than  upon  that  of  the  town  or  city  where  social  and 
intellectual  opportunities  are  so  much  more  abun- 
dant. Unrest  and  discontent  in  village  and  hamlet 
spring  from  hungers  unsatisfied  and  legitimate 
impulses  denied  expression,  and  the  impoverish- 
ment of  life  that  such  deprivations  involve;  and 
never  was  there  a time  when  larger  possibilities  and 
a more  inspiring  mission  summoned  the  rural 
church  to  a life  of  service. 

The  unanimous  testimony  of  those  who  are  bring- 
ing their  experience  and  intelligence  to  bear  upon 
the  solution  of  the  problem  that  confronts  the 
church  in  the  country  is  that  the  chief  obstacle  to 
the  achievement  of  its  noblest  possibilities  is  the 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


129 


overlapping  and  competition  consequent  upon  the 
unnecessary  multiplication  of  separate  organiza- 
tions. “Examples  like  that  of  the  town  in  Penn- 
sylvania in  which,  within  a four-mile  drive  of  a given 
point  in  the  open  country,”  writes  Warren  H.  Wil- 
son, “are  twenty-four  country  churches,  are  numer- 
ous in  all  parts  of  the  country.  ...  In  a Michigan 
group  of  villages,  the  whole  population  of  which 
is  seventeen  hundred,  there  are  fifteen  country 
churches  in  which  thirteen  resident  ministers  are 
at  work.”  In  many  a village,  whose  population  is 
barely  sufficient  for  the  support  of  a single  church, 
there  may  be  seen  around  the  village  green  a group 
of  churches,  three  or  four  in  number,  standing  as 
silent  witnesses  to  the  folly  of  denominational 
rivalry.  Years  ago,  perhaps,  they  were  established 
by  denominational  agencies  eager  to  multiply  ad- 
herents at  a time  when  the  community  gave  promise 
of  a growth  not  subsequently  realized.  Now,  with 
buildings  erected,  and  constituencies  gathered,  and 
local  loyalties  created,  and  sectarian  convictions 
carefully  cultivated,  it  is  difficult  either  to  advance 
or  to  retreat.  A sense  of  denominational  responsi- 
bility to  the  group  of  worshipers  that  has  been  gath- 
ered under  the  tacit  promise  of  missionary  aid  some- 
times appears  to  forbid  withdrawal.  Occasionally 
a denomination  in  the  field  feels  so  strongly  the  vital 
importance  of  the  peculiar  truths  for  which  it 


9 


130 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


stands  as  conscientiously  to  believe  that  its  witness 
should  be  continued  at  any  cost  of  men  and  money. 
Sometimes  it  is  denominational  pride  alone  that  holds 
the  fort.  Progress  is  forbidden  by  the  very  nature 
of  the  circumstances.  In  a constituency  so  limited 
no  church  can  advance  except  at  the  expense  of 
another.  The  division  of  the  religious  forces  of 
the  community  is  so  minute  that  every  church  is 
poor,  engaged  in  a perpetual  struggle  to  keep  the 
wolf  from  the  ecclesiastical  door.  Thus  they  stand, 
three  or  four  churches  where  one  would  suffice,  a 
waste  of  ministerial  service,  a reduplication  of  equip- 
ments involving  unnecessary  expense  of  many  kinds, 
dividing  the  available  total  of  religious  energy; 
and  the  results  are  what  might  be  expected : poverty 
drives  the  churches  to  resort  to  unworthy  methods 
of  money-raising;  salaries  are  so  small  that  only  the 
less  effective  sort  of  ministers  can  be  secured; 
competition  between  churches  breeds  prejudice 
and  division;  denominational  peculiarities  are  ex- 
aggerated in  the  very  effort  of  particular  churches 
to  provide  an  excuse  for  their  existence;  and  gradu- 
ally the  Church  as  an  institution  loses  the  respect 
and  the  support  of  a large  proportion  of  the  people 
and  is  deposed  from  leadership  in  the  life  of  the 
community. 

That  a church  chances  to  be  the  only  church  in  a 
community  is  no  guarantee  of  its  success;  that  will 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


131 


depend  upon  efficient  leadership.  There  is,  more- 
over, an  emulation  in  good  works  between  churches 
in  the  same  neighborhood  that  is  wholesome  and 
stimulating  under  many  circumstances.  However, 
it  cannot  be  gainsaid  that  wherever  the  number  of 
churches  in  proportion  to  the  population  is  such 
that  they  struggle  with  one  another  for  existence, 
the  gain  of  one  being  dependent  upon  the  loss  of 
another,  the  spirit  of  Christian  love,  which  is  the 
essence  of  Christianity,  is  sure  to  suffer  strain  and 
rupture.  While  they  do  not  compete  with  the  same 
degree  of  acrimony,  the  fate  of  such  churches  is 
likely  to  be  similar  to  that  of  the  Kilkenny  cats,  of 
whom  it  will  be  remembered  that  at  the  end  of  the 
struggle  “instead  of  two  cats  there  weren’t  any.” 

The  consensus  of  opinion  is  rapidly  coming  to  be 
that  the  religious  needs  of  communities  of  less  than 
one  thousand  population  are  most  efficiently  served 
by  a single  township  church,  unless  the  people  are 
scattered  over  a very  large  area.  Even  the  needs 
of  thinly  settled  outlying  districts  may  often  best 
be  met  by  establishing  preaching  stations  around  a 
single  church  center.  The  cost  in  both  money  and 
members  of  the  maintenance  of  several  churches, 
where  one  church  is  sufficient  to  minister  to  the  needs 
of  the  entire  population,  is  convincingly  shown  in  the 
following  statistics  gathered  by  the  Massachusetts 
Federation  of  Churches  in  1907  from  a study  of  the 


132 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


one  hundred  most  sparsely  populated  towns  of  the 
state,  ten  towns  being  included  in  each  of  the 
groups  considered: 


Average 

Home 

popula- 

Mission 

tion. 

Members. 

Income. 

Aid. 

Salary. 

Towns  with  one  church. 725 

no 

$1102 

$15 

$874 

Towns  with  two  churches 

(Church) 

71.4 

781 

25 

687 

(Town) 724 

143 

1562 

50 

Towns  with  three  churches 

(Church) 

51 

492 

52 

473 

(Town) 725 

154 

1477 

155 

These  figures  indicate. 

as  the  Rev.  E.  Tallmadge 

Root,  Secretary  of  the  Federation,  points  out,  that 
where  churches  are  multiplied  in  such  communities 
as  these,  not  only  is  the  efficiency  of  the  individual 
churches  lessened,  but  the  total  cost  of  church 
maintenance  increases  at  a rate  more  rapid  than 
that  of  the  increase  of  churches.  The  salaries  of 
ministers,  small  at  the  best,  decrease,  on  the  other 
hand,  with  each  increase  in  the  number  of  churches, 
from  an  average  of  $874  in  the  one-church  town  to 
$687  in  the  two-church  town  and  to  $473  in  the  three- 
church  town.  While  the  percentage  of  the  popula- 
tion within  the  membership  of  the  churches  in- 
creases from  15.17  per  cent,  in  the  first  class  to 
19.75  per  cent,  in  the  second  and  21.24  per  cent, 
in  the  third,  the  increase  is  sadly  disproportionate 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


133 


to  the  number  of  churches  at  work  and  to  the  cost 
per  town.  For,  as  ]\Ir.  Root  says,  “It  is  apparent 
that  while  the  membership  is  increased  30  per  cent, 
by  duplicating,  and  40  per  cent,  by  tripling  the 
churches,  the  cost  per  town,  including  Home  Mis- 
sionary aid,  increases  44  per  cent,  and  47  per  cent, 
respectively,  while  the  amount  of  aid  called  for  per 
town  is  3|  and  10  times  as  much!”  The  decrease 
in  the  average  number  of  members  to  each  church 
as  the  number  of  churches  in  the  towns  increases, 
from  110  in  one-church  to  71.4  in  two-church  and 
51  in  three-church  towns,  may  fairly  be  taken  as  an 
indication  of  the  degree  of  competition  between  the 
churches  which  results  from  their  multiplication. 
If  the  churches,  in  other  words,  drew  from  the  un- 
churched population,  and  not  from  one  another,  the 
average  membership  would  be  the  same  whether 
there  were  one,  two,  or  three  churches  in  the  town. 
“To  place  a second  church  by  the  side  of  the  first,” 
comments  Mr.  Root,  “increases  the  total  member- 
ship by  only  33;  i.  e.,  of  the  143  members,  110  would 
have  been  secured  by  a single  church.  Does  not 
this  mean  that  nearly  77  per  cent,  of  the  energy  of 
both  churches  is  spent  in  competition?  To  add  a 
third  church  wins  11  more,  and  the  same  calcula- 
tion indicates  that  almost  93  per  cent,  of  effort  must 
be  competitive.  What  if  a fourth  be  added?  In 
the  three  smallest  four-church  towns,  with  an  aver- 


134 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


age  population  of  786  instead  of  725,  the  average 
church  membership  is  but  33,  and  the  total  for  the 
town  is  only  141;  which  would  seem  to  show,  as  we 
might  expect,  that  the  competition  becomes  so  in- 
tense and  costly  that  four  churches  actually  win  a 
smaller  proportion  than  two  would  do.” 

This  aspect  of  the  situation  suggests  another  un- 
fortunate result  of  the  unwise  reduplication  of 
churches  in  small  communities.  More  significant 
even  than  the  unnecessary  cost  in  money  is  the 
waste  and  loss  of  moral  influence.  “Ideally,”  it 
has  been  said,  “the  Church  is  the  social  unifier; 
practically,  in  many  places,  the  churches,  just 
because  there  are  several,  are  themselves  the  cause 
of  faction  and  discord.”  Whatever  normal  com- 
petition may  be  to  the  life  of  trade,  we  know  what 
“cut-throat”  competition,  that  disregards  the  rules 
of  the  game,  may  do  for  business.  And  however 
good  may  be  the  purposes  of  the  churches,  the 
competition,  resulting  when  several  are  forced  to 
attempt  to  maintain  their  existence  in  a field  only 
large  enough  for  one,  is  almost  certain  to  provoke 
jealousy  and  a narrowly  sectarian  and  party  spirit 
that  is  fatal  to  Christian  comity,  as  well  as  to  alienate 
from  all  the  churches  some  of  the  finest  elements  in 
the  community.  The  spirit  of  rivalry  repels  the 
indifferent  observer  and  rubs  the  bloom  from  the 
spirituality  of  those  who  indulge  in  it.  Moral 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


135 


leadership  is  incompatible  with  a schismatic  spirit, 
and  where  the  energies  of  the  churches  are  con- 
sumed by  the  necessity  of  building  up  the  institu- 
tion for  its  own  sake,  there  is  no  strength  left  for  that 
free  service  of  the  community  which  is  the  price 
of  influence.  Thus  the  competition  among  the 
churches  shuts  them  out  in  many  a community 
from  fields  of  social  service  where  lie  their  largest 
opportunities. 

The  splitting  up  of  the  available  religious  forces 
in  small  communities,  where  they  are  weak  at  best, 
is  suicidal.  The  report  of  the  survey  of  Ohio,  made 
in  1912  by  the  Board  of  Home  Missions  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  (North),  reveals  some  significant 
facts  which  throw  light  upon  the  relation  of  size  to 
efficiency.  “The  size  of  the  membership  of  a 
church,”  it  declares,  “has  a bearing  upon  its  working 
efficiency  too  direct  and  important  to  permit  us  to 
neglect  it  here.  There  has  been  a great  tendency  in 
the  country  to  multiply  churches  and  denomina- 
tions far  beyond  the  number  needed.  This  tendency 
is  seen  in  the  towns  and  villages,  but  its  effects  are 
not  so  clearly  marked  there.  There  are  more 
churches  in  the  country  in  proportion  to  the  popula- 
tion than  there  are  in  the  towns  and  villages,  and 
especially  are  there  more  small  and  weak  churches. 
. . . Of  the  ‘town’  churches  only  8.7  per  cent,  have 
less  than  25  members  each,  while  59.1  per  cent,  have 


136 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


over  100  members  each.  The  ‘town-country’ 
churches  average  a little  smaller;  but  43.1  per  cent, 
have  over  100  members.  Eighty-three  per  cent, 
of  all  country  churches,  however,  have  less  than 
100  members  each,  while  21.2  per  cent,  have  each 
25  members  or  less.  Here  we  see  in  its  clearest 
form  the  effects  of  strong  denominational  feeling 
upon  church  work.  In  the  towns  the  multiplica- 
tion of  denominations,  while  often  highly  criminal 
from  the  point  of  view  of  church  efiiciency,  is  not  so 
easily  carried  to  an  extreme.  This,  of  course,  is  for 
the  very  obvious  reason  that  there  is  a large  number 
of  people  within  an  easy  church-going  radius  upon 
whom  these  churches  may  draw.  In  the  country 
the  people  are  more  scattered,  and  multiplication 
of  churches  and  denominations  means  the  dividing 
up  of  a clientele  with  very  definite  limits.  Many 
churches  were  found  which  had  a mere  handful  of 
members,  sometimes  but  two  or  three,  who  were 
holding  on  to  the  old  church  long  after  some  other 
church  had  come  to  fill  the  largest  place  in  the 
religious  life  of  the  neighborhood,  a policy  which 
has  very  serious  results.  The  impact  of  a small 
church  upon  society  is  necessarily  slight.  There  is  a 
momentum  to  large  numbers.  ‘He  that  hath,  to  him 
shall  be  given.’ 

“We  may  indicate  this  by  dividing  the  churches 
up  into  six  groups  according  to  the  size  of  their  mem- 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


137 


bership,  and  giving  the  statistics  of  growth  for  each. 
These  groups  will  be  as  follows:  churches  with  a 
membership  of  25  or  less,  26  to  50,  51  to  100,  101  to 
150,  151  to  200,  and  201  and  over.  In  each  of  these 
groups  there  are  included  from  100  to  400  churches, 
enough  to  show  clearly  the  tendencies.  The  per- 
centage of  grow'ing  churches  within  each  of  these 
groups  in  the  order  given  is  as  follows:  2.2  per  cent., 
16.6  per  cent.,  33.5  per  cent.,  48.2  per  cent.,  58.5  per 
cent.,  and  79  per  cent.  The  regularity  with  which 
the  increase  of  efficiency  and  ability  to  survive  paral- 
lels the  increase  in  membership  is  very  striking. 
Obviously,  the  great  over-multiplication  of  small 
churches  is  one  of  the  root  causes  of  the  failure  of  the 
country  churches  to  meet  the  conditions  which  we 
have  previously  mentioned  as  affecting  church 
efficiency.  They  are  unable  to  provide  themselves 
with  resident  pastors  who  shall  give  them  full  service. 
They  are  unable  to  hold  weekly  public  meetings. 
They  are  unable  adequately  to  equip  themselves  for 
the  work  they  must  do.  The  conclusion  is  unavoid- 
able that  the  small  church  is  a dying  proposition. 
. . . Not  until  a church  has  at  least  100  members 
does  it  have  an  even  chance  to  survive.” 

Not  all  churches  that  are  spared  the  disadvantages 
of  the  competition  of  rival  organizations  in  small 
communities  thrive  spiritually,  as  has  been  said, 
or  fully  meet  the  needs  of  their  constituency.  But 


138 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


where  there  is  an  average  degree  of  consecration  and 
intelligence  in  the  membership  and  leadership,  it  is 
fair  to  say  that  they  render  a far  more  effective 
service  than  could  be  rendered  if  their  strength  were 
divided.  In  the  recent  study  of  two  typical  coun- 
ties in  New  York  and  Vermont,  already  referred  to, 
the  authors  say,  “Among  the  smaller  communities 
those  with  a single  church  are  the  only  ones  with  a 
spirit  of  good  cheer  in  church  matters.  The  only 
township  in  Windsor  county  that  has  made  a rela- 
tive gain  in  church  attendance  and  has  also  gained 
in  benevolence  and  in  total  expenditures  is  a one- 
church  township,  while  another  one-church  town- 
ship (the  only  other  in  the  county)  stands  second  in 
these  respects.  . . . The  figures  for  attendance, 
membership,  and  expenditures  gathered  in  Tomp- 
kins county  indicate  how  very  various  the  evils  of 
over-churching  have  become.  Only  four  churches 
in  the  smaller  communities  in  a twenty-year  period 
have  increased  their  activities  in  two  or  more  of  the 
three  lines  of  activity  considered  above.  Three  of 
these  are  in  one-church  communities.  The  fourth 
is  a weak  church.  Its  expenditures  were  small  in 
both  periods,  and  its  apparent  gain  in  membership 
is  due  to  padded  rolls.  Attendance  figures  furnish 
the  best  indication  of  the  effect  of  over-churching. 
In  small  communities  with  only  one  church  there 
was  a loss  of  29  per  cent,  in  attendance  in  twenty 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


139 


years.  In  small  communities  where  there  were  two 
churches  there  was  a loss  of  50  per  cent.,  while  in 
the  small  communities  of  more  than  two  churches 
there  was  a loss  of  nearly  55  per  cent.”^ 

The  cause  of  organized  Christianity  in  com- 
munities where  churches  have  been  multiplied  be- 
yond the  needs  of  the  neighborhood  and  its  ability 
to  sustain  them  will  never  prosper  until  such  churches 
combine  in  some  form  of  co-operative  union.  It  is 
imperatively  necessary  that  the  forces  be  united 
if  they  are  to  win  and  hold  the  country  districts 
for  Christ.  Three  forms  of  such  combination  have 
been  tested  in  various  parts  of  the  country  until 
they  have  passed  the  stage  of  experiment,  two  of 
them  applications  of  the  federal  principle,  the  third 
a form  of  union  still  more  complete.  They  are: 
first,  the  church  federation,  such  as  has  been  al- 
ready described,  in  which  churches,  worshiping 
apart,  unite  for  common  tasks;  second,  the  feder- 
ated church,  composed  of  two  or  more  churches  of 
different  denominations,  each  retaining  its  identity 
and  organization,  but  uniting  for  work  and  worship 
under  a single  pastor;  and  third,  the  union  de- 
nominational church,  where  two  or  more  churches 
of  different  denominations  are  merged  to  form  a new 
organization  allied  with  the  denomination  of  its 
choice.  The  results  of  such  experiments  have 

* Gill  and  Pinchot,  The  Country  Church,  pp.  144,  211. 


140 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


at  least  demonstrated  that,  however  serious  may  be 
the  differences  of  opinion  as  to  the  most  practicable 
forms  in  which  Christian  forces  in  over-churched 
rural  communities  may  combine,  combination  in 
some  form  is  the  most  hopeful  means  of  meeting  the 
conditions  that  confront  them. 

The  church  federation,  the  federated  church,  and 
the  union  church  are  related  much  as  are  friendship, 
partnership,  and  marriage;  they  stand  for  degrees 
of  affiliation  and  identification  of  interest  and  activ- 
ity. In  communities  where  the  problems  arising 
from  the  multiplication  of  churches  are  not  pressing, 
such  a form  of  “church  federation”  as  is  described  in 
the  previous  chapter  is  as  effective  in  the  country 
as  in  the  city.  Such  organized  co-operation  is  more 
than  comity.  Comity  is  negative  in  its  implica- 
tions: while  it  involves  the  cordial  recognition  on 
the  part  of  one  denomination  of  the  Christian  char- 
acter of  another,  it  is  for  the  most  part  expressed 
in  a policy  of  non-interference.  Comity  is  inter- 
denominational courtesy:  it  is  based  upon  mutual 
respect  and  esteem.  It  is  fundamental,  of  course, 
to  every  form  of  co-operative  effort,  but  it  stops  short 
of  such  co-operation.  It  involves  regard  for  the 
rights  of  others,  the  avoidance  of  causes  of  offense 
and  of  encroachment  upon  another’s  field,  respect 
for  the  rules  of  order  and  discipline  that  prevail  in 
other  communions, — in  brief,  all  mutual  considera- 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


• 141 


tion  owed  to  one  another  by  those  who  are  engaged 
in  a common  cause.  Where  this  is  lacking,  further 
co-operation  is  impossible. 

While  comity  involves  friendship,  a church  federa- 
tion involves  friendship  cemented  in  a formal  offen- 
sive and  defensive  alliance  for  the  furthering  of 
common  ends.  In  such  organized  co-operation  the 
churches  concerned  maintain  their  separate  organi- 
zations, meetings  for  worship  and  ordinary  activi- 
ties, and  unite  only  for  such  common  tasks  as  cannot 
so  well  be  done  apart.  Co-operative  effort  of  this 
character  ought  to  be  more  easily  brought  about 
and  made  effective  in  the  smaller  community  than 
in  the  larger.  Although  it  is  not  a form  of  com- 
bination adapted  to  the  cure  of  the  evils  that  spring 
from  a plethora  of  churches,  it  will  add  dignity  to 
the  church  in  any  community  and  immensely  en- 
hance its  influence.  When  the  churches  thus  speak 
and  act  together,  voicing  the  conviction  of  the  entire 
Christian  fellowship  and  directing  the  full  weight 
of  its  influence  toward  desirable  ends,  the  whole 
community  cannot  but  heed.  The  natural  field  for 
such  a co-operative  federation,  as  has  been  said 
already,  lies  in  those  broad  avenues  of  social  service 
that  lead  to  the  purification  of  politics,  the  unifica- 
tion of  charities,  the  protection  of  childhood  and 
youth,  the  enforcement  of  law,  the  promotion  of 
community  studies,  and  the  passing  of  good  legis- 


142 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


lation.  Churches  of  a like  spirit  and  method  may 
also  profitably  unite  in  evangelistic  effort  and  stir 
and  mold  a whole  population  as  a single  church 
cannot  hope  to  do.  Such  federation  reveals  the 
wealth  of  ideals  in  which  all  the  churches  share  and 
draws  the  people  of  God  together  by  the  revelation 
of  the  degree  of  unity  that  exists  below  divisive  dif- 
ferences, and  prepares  the  ground  for  those  more 
intimate  forms  of  fellowship  and  co-operation  which, 
in  communities  that  are  over-churched,  make  for 
economy  and  increased  efficiency. 

Another  form  of  fellowship  is  known  as  “federated 
church,”  used  here  to  describe  those  combinations  of 
churches  under  the  leadership  of  a single  minister 
that  are  common  in  various  parts  of  the  country. 
From  their  prevalence  in  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
this  has  been  called  “the  Vermont  plan.”  I do  not 
speak  here  of  the  combinations  of  several  churches 
of  the  same  denomination  under  one  itinerant  min- 
ister, such  as  have  always  been  common,  but  to  the 
federation  of  two  or  more  churches  of  different  com- 
munions within  the  same  section  served  by  a single 
minister  and  worshiping  in  the  same  building. 
Where  churches  are  separated  more  or  less  widely 
and  are  located  in  different  communities,  whether 
they  are  of  the  same  or  of  different  denominations, 
little  is  gained  by  their  uniting  in  the  support  of 
a single  minister  except  financial  strength  and  the 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


143 


superior  quality  of  leadership  that  this  usually 
secures;  and  even  this  apparent  benefit  is  generally 
more  than  offset  by  the  division  of  interest,  and  the 
limited  time  that  the  minister  can  devote  to  each 
constituent  field.  The  infiuence  of  a church  is  sure 
to  suffer  when  the  leader  of  its  activities  is  not  iden- 
tified with  the  community  to  which  it  ministers. 
He  must  have  a stake  in  the  community,  must  be 
of  it,  if  he  is  himself  to  be,  or  to  lead  his  church  to 
be,  a potent  factor  in  its  affairs. 

No  church  can  thrive  under  “absent  treatment.” 
Merely  to  dip  into  the  community  at  intervals,  as 
a comet  into  the  solar  system,  and  then  retire  to 
some  distant  point  inaccessible  to  his  parishioners 
until  the  period  for  return  recurs,  is  not  conducive  to 
the  minister’s  usefulness,  either  in  church  or  neigh- 
borhood. A district  large  enough  to  sustain  a 
church  needs  the  entire  time  of  the  pastor  of  the 
church.  In  the  report  of  the  rural  survey  of  Ohio 
made  by  the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Home  Missions, 
to  which  reference  has  already  been  made,  it  is  said, 
“There  still  remains  in  some  sections  an  outworn 
notion  that  it  does  not  require  a whole  minister  to 
direct  a country  church;  that  the  work  of  a country 
church  is  easier  than  the  work  of  a town  or  city 
church.  This  notion  is  gradually  being  shocked  out 
of  us,  and  we  are  discovering  how  hard  it  is  to  suc- 
ceed and  how  easy  it  is  to  fail  in  the  country  field. 


144 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


...  A whole  minister  has  a big  enough  task  to 
keep  a church  alive,  particularly  in  the  country,  as 
the  records  well  show;  a fraction  of  a minister  has 
an  infinitely  more  difficult  task.  The  connection 
of  the  churches  on  a circuit  is  an  important  factor. 
Where  the  churches  are  so  located  that  their  respec- 
tive parishes  are  practically  contiguous,  making  one 
large  parish  with  several  preaching  points,  this  sys- 
tem does  not  have  such  ill  results.  Where  the 
churches  are  so  located  that  their  parishes  are  quite 
distinct  and  a considerable  amount  of  travel  is  neces- 
sary to  go  from  one  to  the  other,  the  situation  is 
more  serious.  In  either  event,  however,  the  effect 
of  this  systematized  vivisection  upon  church  growth 
is  unmistakable.  Of  all  the  churches  with  a whole 
minister  each,  60  per  cent,  are  growing.  The  few 
country  churches  that  come  in  this  class  make  as 
good  a showing  as  the  town  churches.  Six  times 
out  of  ten  the  minister  who  can  give  his  entire  atten- 
tion to  one  church  succeeds  in  making  it  prosper. 
Probably  this  is  as  high  a percentage  of  efficiency  as 
any  profession  can  show.  Of  the  half-a-minister 
churches  only  39  per  cent,  are  growing.  Of  the 
third-of-a-minister  churches  only  35  per  cent,  are 
growing,  while  of  those  churches  which  have  one- 
fourth  of  a minister  or  less,  26  per  cent,  are  growing.” 
Evidently  one  of  the  causes  of  the  lack  of  strength 
in  rural  churches  is  the  non-residence  of  the  pastors. 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


145 


and  the  consequently  fractional  character  of  the 
service  they  are  able  to  render.  The  absentee  pastor 
is  no  more  lilcely  to  cultivate  successfully  his  spiritual 
vineyard  than  the  absentee  farmer  is  likely  to  pro- 
duce good  crops.  “The  success  of  the  church  and 
its  continuance,”  declares  the  report  of  the  survey 
dealing  with  conditions  in  Missouri,  “are  dependent 
upon  the  residence  of  the  minister  in  the  parish. 
The  difficulties  of  the  church  and  the  danger  of  its 
extinction  are  greatly  increased  by  a non-resident 
ministry.”  It  may  at  least  be  said  in  favor  of  such 
a combination  of  churches  of  different  denomina- 
tions situated  in  a single  community  as  we  have  now 
in  mind,  that  it  generally  makes  possible  a resident 
ministry. 

A one-minister  plan  has  been  tried  in  many  places 
during  the  past  twenty  years  with  varying  degrees 
of  success.  The  details  of  method  and  organiza- 
tion differ  widely  according  to  conditions.  It  is  an 
essential  characteristic  of  the  plan  that  the  church 
organizations  involved  remain  intact,  each  retain- 
ing its  own  denominational  affiliations  and  con- 
tributing to  its  own  objects  of  benevolence.  Usually 
the  pastors  are  chosen  in  succession  from  the  ministry 
of  the  constituent  denominations.  Very  often,  and 
generally  most  widely,  the  union  is  entered  into  for 
a specified  time  only,  and  may  be  terminated  at  the 
expiration  of  the  period  at  the  desire  of  either  party. 

10 


146 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Success  under  this  method,  it  need  hardly  be  said, 
is  impossible  except  upon  the  broadest  basis  of 
requirements  for  church  membership.  If  it  is  to 
be  truly  a community  church,  all  who  love  the  Lord 
Jesus  and  who  desire  to  labor  for  the  coming  of  his 
kingdom  must  be  welcomed.  A successful  church 
of  this  type  at  Freewater,  Oregon,  reports:  “Among 
our  members  we  now  number  Congregationalists, 
Presbyterians,  Methodists,  Christians,  Baptists, 
German  Lutherans,  and  Episcopalians.”  The  widest 
liberty  of  conviction  as  to  non-essentials,  and  of  prac- 
tice in  the  administration  of  the  ordinances,  par- 
ticularly as  to  admission  to  the  Lord’s  Table  and  as 
to  the  mode  and  subjects  of  baptism,  must  be  per- 
mitted, and  if  the  convictions  of  the  minister  in 
charge  do  not  permit  him  to  administer  the  ordi- 
nances as  the  individual  member  or  candidate  for 
membership  desires,  the  services  of  a minister 
from  a neighboring  parish  must  be  sought.  For- 
tunately, such  a spirit  of  tolerance  and  charity  is 
increasing  every  day  as  “the  thoughts  of  men  are 
widened  with  the  process  of  the  suns.” 

The  advantages  of  such  a plan  are  evident. 
Many  federated  churches  have  secured  a stronger 
and  better  paid  ministry,  resident  upon  the  field, 
and  a more  adequate  equipment;  and  this  at  a 
lower  total  expenditure.  Where  there  is  real  union 
of  spirit,  such  a federation  is  likely  to  take  a place  of 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


147 


moral  leadership  in  the  community  impossible  to 
any  one  church  while  the  Christian  forces  are  divided. 
The  federated  church  in  Freewater,  Oregon,  com- 
posed of  a Congregational  and  a Presbjderian 
church,  declares  after  two  years’  trial,  “All  are 
working  together  in  harmony,  making  possible 
several  things  not  attainable  before.  The  Chris- 
tian forces  of  the  community  now  present  a united 
front  to  the  enemy,  and  instead  of  discord,  proselyt- 
ing, and  small  numbers,  union  and  harmony  pre- 
vail. . . . The  church  has  attained  the  distinction 
of  being  called  ‘the  town’s  church.’  ...  It  has 
called  forth  the  respect  and  co-operation  of  many 
not  otherwise  connected  with  it.  It  is  a commu- 
nity church,  with  the  stamp  of  approval  of  the  city 
officers  and  business  men  of  the  town.  The  mem- 
bership has  already  crystallized  into  a strong 
working  force  for  righteousness  which  will  be  far- 
reaching  in  its  results.”^  Similar  testimony  comes 
from  many  quarters  of  the  effectiveness  of  such  a 
form  of  federation  under  favorable  conditions  and 
leadership. 

An  experiment  of  this  sort,  however,  often  encoun- 
ters the  gravest  difficulties;  and  it  is  to  be  questioned 
whether  there  have  not  been  more  failures  than  suc- 
cesses in  the  trial  of  it.  The  odium  theologicum  dies 
hard,  unfortunately,  and  the  grace  of  God  often 


* From  a leaflet  of  information  issued  by  this  church. 


148 


THE  UNION  OF  CHKISTIAN  FORCES 


seems  to  be  insufficiently  appropriated  to  overcome 
the  crotchets  of  his  children!  Sectarian  prin- 
ciples, that  have  been  so  assiduously  cultivated, 
and  that  are  so  deeply  rooted,  are  not  easUy  trans- 
planted, even  across  the  street,  from  one  ecclesiasti- 
cal garden-bed  to  another.  Local  rivalries  with  the 
irritations  that  they  sometimes  provoke  are  not 
easily  forgotten,  and  since  the  churches  that  are 
the  subjects  of  federation  retain  their  respective 
identities,  these  are  sometimes  carried  into  the  part- 
nership and  become  disturbers  of  the  peace.  The 
minister  in  charge,  who  must  necessarily  retain 
ecclesiastical  standing  in  a particular  denominational 
body,  often  seems  an  alien  to  members  of  the 
denomination  within  the  federated  church  to  which 
he  does  not  belong.  “The  fact  is,”  writes  an  ex- 
perienced leader  in  this  form  of  church  organiza- 
tion, “that  when  a Methodist  is  on  the  field,  if  the 
federation  is  between  the  Methodists  and  the  Bap- 
tists, the  Baptists  pray  for  his  removal,  and  when 
a Baptist  pastor  is  on  the  field,  the  Methodists  sit 
up  all  night  praying  for  his  removal,  and  by  actual 
experience,  after  a five  years’  test,  the  united  con- 
gregation is  very  little  larger  than  either  one  of  them 
was  before  the  federation  began.”  The  question 
might  be  raised  as  to  whether  the  churches  under 
consideration  have  enough  of  the  Christian  spirit  to 
make  worth  while  the  attempt  to  federate  them. 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


149 


The  difficulties  of  administration,  where  the  con- 
stituent bodies  retain  their  individual  organizations 
with  separate  sets  of  officers,  are  often  extremely 
serious  without  discernible  fault  in  any  quarter. 
A broad-minded  and  efficient  Christian  worker  in 
Vermont,  where  the  idea  originated,  writes  in 
answer  to  an  inquiry,  “Federation,  where  two  or 
more  churches  get  together  for  the  support  of  one 
pastor,  is  an  utter  failure  in  Vermont  and  I believe 
will  be  everywhere.” 

Notable  results  in  many  experiments  seem  to 
promise  permanent  success  for  the  federated  church 
in  certain  localities.  On  the  whole,  however,  this 
plan  has  not  proved  to  be  as  successful  as  that  of  the 
complete  union  of  churches  into  a single  organiza- 
tion in  affiliation  with  a particular  denomination. 
This,  the  third  of  the  methods  of  federation,  may 
be  distinguished  as  “the  union  denominational 
church.” 

Under  such  a title  it  is  not  meant  to  include  those 
combinations  of  believers  that  exist  in  some  locali- 
ties in  so-called  union  churches  that  sustain  no 
denominational  connection  whatsoever,  nor  such 
as  are  composed  of  those  holding  elsewhere  their 
ecclesiastical  connections  and  uniting  only  for  the 
purpose  of  common  worship.  Such  organizations, 
unaffiliated  with  any  general  denominational  body, 
are  deprived  of  some  of  the  essentials  of  strength 


150 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


and  usefulness  and  tend  to  become  mere  preaching 
stations.  They  lack  the  stimulating  fellowship  of 
other  churches,  and  are  without  incentive  to  mis- 
sionary activity  or  channel  for  its  expression  in 
gifts  of  money  or  service.  They  tend  to  become 
isolated  and  self-centered  and  out  of  touch  with  the 
stream  of  religious  interest  and  progress. 

The  union  we  are  now  considering  is  that  of  two 
or  more  churches  of  different  denominations  that 
unite  to  form  a single  church,  either  of  one  of  the 
constituent  denominations  or  of  some  other  faith 
not  represented  in  the  combination.  Thus  a Bap- 
tist and  a Methodist  church  in  a community  too 
small  to  support  more  than  a single  organization 
might  unite,  under  this  plan,  to  form  either  a Meth- 
odist or  a Baptist  church,  or,  if  it  should  be  deemed 
wise,  they  might  choose  to  become  a Congregational 
church.  The  essential  features  of  such  a plan  of 
union  are  that  the  churches  forming  the  combina- 
tion shall  not  retain  their  original  identity,  nor  their 
separate  sets  of  officers,  nor  cut  themselves  loose 
from  all  denominational  affiliations;  but  shall  or- 
ganize themselves  into  a new  church  that  shall  be 
a member  of  some  one  of  the  denominations  already 
existing,  thus  retaining  the  stimulating  influences 
of  association  with  other  bodies  of  Christians,  and 
sharing  the  world-wide  outlook  of  denominational 
activities  and  securing  the  beneflts  of  the  counsel 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


151 


and  direction  of  the  larger  body  to  which  they 
belong. 

The  possibility  of  unions  of  this  nature  might 
seem  chimerical  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  they 
have  been  accomplished  in  numerous  localities  and 
are  growing  more  frequent.  Such  a plan  avoids 
most  of  the  difficulties  which  the  federated  churches 
are  called  upon  to  meet.  It  has,  however,  obstacles 
peculiar  to  itself  with  which  to  contend.  The  most 
obvious  is  the  natural  reluctance  of  any  church  to 
relinquish  its  identity.  Even  a failure  does  not  al- 
ways recognize  failure,  and  never  likes  to  admit  it, 
particularly  in  the  presence  of  an  apparently  suc- 
cessful rival.  Which  shall  be  the  church  to  sacrifice 
its  life  upon  the  altar  of  efficiency?  When  that 
difficult  question  is  decided,  the  problem  of  union  is 
well  on  the  way  to  solution.  Blessed  is  that  church, 
which,  in  the  face  of  the  crying  needs  of  a community 
that  only  a united  church  can  meet,  has  so  caught 
the  spirit  of  its  Master  as  to  believe  that  with  the 
church,  as  with  the  disciple,  to  save  life  is  to  lose  it, 
and  that  to  lose  life  for  Christ’s  sake  and  the  gospel’s 
is  to  find  it ! 

It  is  essential,  of  course,  to  this  form  of  union 
that  the  constituent  churches  shall  deliberately  put 
aside  all  divisive  denominational  peculiarities  of 
polity  and  practice.  Where  conscientious  convic- 
tions prevent  this,  the  price  is  continued  disunion. 


152 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


If,  for  example,  Congregationalists  and  Baptists  are 
to  imite  to  form  a Baptist  church,  Congregational- 
ists cannot  impose  sprinkling  upon  Baptists,  nor 
Baptists  immersion  upon  Congregationalists.  So 
much  is  obvious.  There  is  always  the  possibility  of 
the  establishment  of  a form  of  “associate  member- 
ship” by  which  unimmersed  believers  may  be  affil- 
iated with  the  church,  but  this  is  to  take  in  members, 
as  it  were,  by  the  back  door,  and  is  always  an  un- 
satisfactory makeshift.  Either  sprinkling  must  be 
frankly  recognized  as  valid  in  essence  and  spirit  if 
defective  in  form,  or  Baptists  must  cease  to  require 
baptism  in  any  form  as  a prerequisite  to  church 
membership,  and  receive  members  on  profession  of 
faith  alone,  leaving  the  observance  of  the  ordinance 
to  the  individual  conscience,  like  their  open-member- 
ship brethren  in  England.  Similarly,  if  diverse 
elements  are  to  unite  in  the  organization  of  an 
Episcopal  church,  the  Episcopalians  must  relinquish 
insistence  upon  the  exclusive  validity  of  ministerial 
orders  episcopally  derived  on  the  basis  of  a doctrine 
of  apostolic  succession.  Where  such  concessions 
are  impossible,  a union  of  churches  is  for  the  present 
impossible.  These  are  but  examples  of  practical 
difficulties  that  may  arise,  whatever  denomination 
may  be  chosen  by  the  union  of  forces.  It  is  to  avoid 
them  that  it  is  sometimes  counted  wise  to  organize 
the  united  church  under  a denomination  other  than 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


153 


that  to  which  any  of  the  churches  concerned  be- 
longs. One  thing  only  is  essential:  that  the  new 
church,  whatever  its  affiliations,  shall  be  flexible  and 
tolerant,  comprehensive  and  catholic,  truly  a com- 
munity church. 

This  is  the  form  of  union,  however  brought  about, 
that  holds  most  promise  for  the  future.  When  ar- 
ranged through  state  denominational  agencies,  or 
by  state  interdenominational  federations,  so  that  the 
denominations  involved  shall  each  gain  a union 
church  where  they  consent  to  surrender  a church  to 
unite  with  one  of  another  denomination,  it  promises 
best.  As  the  federated  church  is  known  as  “the 
Vermont  plan,”  the  credit  for  the  promotion  of  the 
plan  of  reciprocal  exchange  of  churches  between  de- 
nominations belongs  to  the  Interdenominational 
Commission  of  Maine,  the  flrst  of  state  church 
federations,  which  has  long  advocated  it.  The  re- 
port of  the  Commission  for  1914  declares,  “Our 
Maine  plan  of  reciprocal  exchanges  was  recom- 
mended to  the  Federal  Council  of  Churches  of  Christ 
in  America  in  Chicago  last  December  by  the  Home 
Missions  Commission,  and  was  approved  by  the 
Federal  Council  as  the  ideal  for  adoption  in  all  parts 
of  the  country.”  The  spirit  and  method  of  the  plan 
are  well  described  in  another  section  of  the  report: 
For  the  purposes  of  preventive  and  constructive 
co-operation  it  was  recommended : 


154 


THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


1.  That  the  denominations,  through  their  supervising 
representatives,  such  as  state  agents,  home  missionaries,  or 
presiding  elders,  report  to  the  Commission  the  names  of 
towns  in  which  a union  of  churches  may  seem  desirable,  in 
order  that  the  Commission  may  serve  as  a clearing-house 
and  bureau  of  reciprocity. 

2.  That  the  Commission  then  shall  consider  the  condi- 
tions in  these  several  towns,  the  constituencies  of  the  churches 
and  the  changes  which  would  appear  desirable  for  the  best 
welfare  of  the  community,  and,  when  the  Commission  finds 
that  an  equitable  exchange  can  be  made  so  that  in  one  town 
denomination  A ’may  surrender  to  denomination  B its  church 
interests,  and  in  another  town  denomination  B can  surrender 
an  equal  interest  to  denomination  A,  then  the  Commission 
shall  recommend  to  the  two  denominations  such  an  exchange. 

3.  That  such  reciprocal  exchanges  shall  be  contemplated 
only  between  those  denominations  which  distinctly  commit 
themselves  to  the  plan,  and  the  interests  of  other  denomina- 
tions shall  be  in  no  wise  molested  by  recommendations  of 
the  Commission. 

4.  It  is  recognized  that  this  plan  requires  great  care  and 
consideration  in  its  execution  lest  the  prejudices  and  the 
feelings  of  local  church-members  be  ignored  and  ideal  states 
be  sought  which  are  not  practical.  Particularly  must  all 
conscientious  scruples  be  carefully  safeguarded  and  good 
feeling  and  brotherly  love  be  preserved. 

5.  This  plan  distinctly  confesses  that  the  so-called  “union” 
churches,  while  approved  in  some  places,  yet  incur  so  many 
perils,  through  their  lack  of  associational  fellowship  or  supe- 
rior ecclesiastical  supervision,  through  ha'sdng  no  larger  mis- 
sionary interests,  home  or  foreign,  and  no  approved  ministry 
from  which  to  secure  pastoral  care,  as  to  be  unwise  organiza- 
tions to  encourage.  This  plan  aims  at  consolidating  religious 


IN  COUNTRY  AND  VILLAGE 


155 


forces  and  leaving  them  within  the  limits  of  denominational 
fellowship. 

The  Rev.  Josiah  Strong,  of  the  American  Insti- 
tute of  Social  Service,  is  quoted  as  saying,  “The 
greatest  need  at  the  present  time  of  this  entire 
movement  (toward  the  unification  of  Christian 
forces)  is  a practical  vindication  of  the  principles 
and  methods  of  church  union  and  federation  in  the 
smaller  towns,  villages,  and  hamlets.”  The  pioneers 
in  these  experiments  are  rendering  a service  to  the 
cause  of  the  kingdom  of  God  that  can  hardly  be 
overestimated.  Out  of  the  present  experimental 
stage  are  to  come  principles  and  methods  that  will 
guide  the  development  of  the  future.  Even  the 
failures  are  instructive  as  showing  ways  to  be 
avoided.  It  is  something  gained  that  we  have  come 
to  see  so  clearly  the  necessities  that  compel  some 
readjustment  of  religious  forces  in  over-churched 
rural  communities  if  the  Church  is  to  rise  to  its 
duties  and  opportunities.  The  future  of  the  Church 
in  America  and  the  place  that  it  is  to  hold  in  the 
developing  life  of  the  nation  are  dependent  upon  the 
progress  of  the  spirit  of  Christian  unity.  “Organic 
church  union  at  the  top,”  i.  e.,  through  the  amalga- 
mation of  entire  denominations,  has  thus  far  made 
slow  progress;  the  immediate  need  is  a larger  num- 
ber of  successful  examples  of  the  possibility  of 
“union  at  the  bottom,”  in  the  co-operation  and  com- 


156 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


bination  of  individual  churches  of  different  de- 
nominations. The  spirit  of  unity  thus  fostered  at 
the  base  will  make  its  way  toward  the  summit. 
The  greatest  hindrances  to-day  are  inertia,  a narrow 
sectarianism,  selfishness,  and  a lack  of  spiritual 
vision;  but  these  are  not  inherent,  and  are  not  insur- 
mountable. When  the  churches  are  more  anxious 
to  leaven  the  community  with  a saving  gospel  than 
to  keep  up  denominational  fences  and  to  win  a 
sectarian  success,  they  will  be  willing  to  unite  on 
essentials,  whatever  may  become  of  non-essentials. 
The  foggy  thinking  in  which  we  lose  ourselves  and 
lose  touch  with  our  fellow-Christians  wdll  some  day 
be  dissipated  when  love  floods  in  like  the  light  and 
the  mists  and  noxious  vapors  of  the  night  fly  before 
the  ascending  sun. 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME 
MISSIONS 


Combinations  in  business  world. — Obstacles  to  co-opera- 
tion in  home  mission  effort. — Past  methods  of  operation. — 
Conditions  in  the  West  demand  the  establishment  of  churches. 
— Problems  presented  by  the  complex  nature  of  the  popula- 
tion.— Successful  operations  of  the  American  Sunday-School 
Union. — Home  Missions  Council. — Its  organization,  princi- 
ples, and  operations:  investigations  of  particular  sections 
of  the  country,  reports  of  conditions  as  discovered. — ^Addi- 
tional functions  and  powers  suggested. 


CHAPTER  VII 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  IMISSIONS 

Wherever  we  look,  the  competitive  idea  and 
spirit,  both  in  theory  and  in  practice,  is  giving  way 
before  the  modern  principle  of  co-operation.  In 
social  theory  and  experiment,  the  thought  of  our 
day  moves  from  individualism  toward  collectivism. 
In  politics,  party  lines  are  breaking  down  and  men 
of  diverse  theories  are  uniting  for  the  attainment  of 
practical  ends.  In  the  industrial,  and  commercial, 
and  financial  worlds,  combination  spells  success. 
“Efficiency”  is  the  new  word  on  everybody’s  lips, 
and  to  the  stern  test  of  its  requirements  all  the  proc- 
esses of  the  business  world  must  be  brought.  Not 
less  must  the  methods  of  every  religious  enterprise 
be  judged  in  terms  of  efficiency,  for  the  evangeliza- 
tion of  the  world  pre-eminently  deserves  the  name 
of  “big  business.”  Waste  of  time  and  effort,  re- 
duplication, unnecessary  expense  of  any  kind  are  less 
defensible  here  than  elsewhere.  The  real  difficulty 
in  this  field,  however,  arises  from  the  attempt  of  con- 
scientious men  to  discriminate  between  waste  and 
necessary  expenditure,  and  to  discover  how  far  it  is 
possible  for  Christian  people,  with  their  differences 

159 


160 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  religious  views,  to  combine  their  forces  for 
economy  of  effort. 

There  are  peculiar  obstacles  in  the  way  of  full 
co-operation  between  the  churches  in  home  mis- 
sionary effort.  On  the  frontier,  denominations  con- 
test for  new  territory.  Their  prosperity  and  growth 
depend  upon  pushing  forward  and  occupying  the 
points  that  promise  some  day  to  be  strategic.  All 
the  motives  of  denominational  pride  and  ambition, 
together  with  a sincere  fidelity  to  denominational 
convictions  and  downright  earnestness  of  religious 
purpose,  combine  to  urge  the  churches  to  occupy 
the  new  districts  at  the  earliest  possible  moment. 
The  necessity  for  comity  and  co-operation  in  home 
missionary  enterprises  arises  from  the  fact  that  these 
impulses,  working  in  all  denominations  alike,  drive 
them  in  the  same  directions,  and  tempt  all  to  occupy 
those  localities  that  give  most  promise  of  becoming 
centers  of  influence.  “As  soon  as  a town  was 
opened,”  said  a speaker  at  the  Chicago  meeting  of 
the  Federal  Council,  “the  denominations  used  to 
hurry  into  it:  Episcopalians  in  the  parlor-car, 
Presbyterians  in  the  sleeper,  Congregationalists  in 
the  day  coach.  Baptists  on  the  tender,  and  Method- 
ists on  the  cow-catcher;  and  by  the  time  those  in  the 
passenger  coaches  had  unlimbered,  the  Baptists  and 
the  Methodists  were  building  their  chapels.  Very 
soon  the  problem  was  how  to  get  some  of  the  de- 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS  161 

nominations  out!”  For  years  the  various  sects 
have  labored  at  the  task  of  winning  the  new  empire 
of  America  for  Christ,  each  with  its  independent 
plan  of  campaign  as  though  it  alone  were  in  the  field, 
without  consultation  or  co-operation,  or  troubling  to 
acquaint  itself  with  the  methods  or  results  of  the 
activities  of  others  engaged  in  the  same  enterprise. 

Reassuring  signs  of  a better  day  are  appearing. 
The  task  is  so  great — nothing  less  than  the  conquest 
and  development  of  a new  nation — and  the  need  so 
appalling,  and  the  results  of  such  guerrilla  warfare 
so  meager  in  comparison  with  the  need,  that  the  de- 
nominations have  been  driven  to  join  hand,  and 
heart,  and  will,  in  their  common  work  of  evangeliza- 
tion. Here  are  almost  100,000,000  of  the  most 
energetic  and  progressive  people  under  the  sun,  in  a 
territory  vast  and  rich  enough  to  support  a popula- 
tion twenty  times  its  size,  pressing  forward  in  an 
irresistible  tide  into  the  sparsely  settled  regions  on 
the  western  slope  of  the  continent;  eager  for  gain, 
ready  for  privation  and  sacrifice  in  the  pursuit  of 
it,  needing  the  touch  of  that  idealism  that  alone  can 
redeem  such  ambition  from  sordid  greed,  and  pre- 
senting an  unexampled  opportunity  for  the  minis- 
tration of  the  Church  which  alone  can  furnish  the 
altruistic  impulse.  On  the  broad  prairies,  towns 
spring  up  almost  over  night,  and  the  plowshare  of  the 
pioneer  turning  over  the  unbroken  sod  transforms 


11 


162 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


the  rolling  plains  into  waving  fields  of  grain.  Vast 
irrigation  projects  convert  waste  places  into  a luxu- 
riant garden  and  cause  the  desert  to  blossom  as  the 
rose.  Everywhere  upon  the  frontier,  homes  are 
hardly  built  before  schools  are  planted  among  them; 
but  the  saloon  and  gambling  house  are  quick  to  fol- 
low in  the  wake  of  progress.  If  such  new  territories 
are  to  be  won  for  God  and  righteousness,  the  church 
must  be  early  upon  the  field  and  make  its  contribu- 
tion to  their  development  during  the  early,  formative 
years. 

It  is  the  prosperity  of  America  that  is,  in  part,  its 
peril.  The  story  is  told  of  a soldier  in  the  army  of 
Antigonus  who  became  conspicuous  for  his  bravery 
upon  the  field  of  battle.  With  invincible  courage 
he  faced  the  most  overwhelming  odds,  led  forlorn 
hopes  to  victory,  was  foremost  in  the  charge  and  last 
in  retreat.  Attracting  the  attention  and  admiration 
of  his  officers,  he  was  brought  into  the  presence  of  the 
general.  On  inquiry  it  was  found  that  the  man  was 
poor  and  afflicted  with  a distressing  and  painful  dis- 
ease. In  pity  the  general  bestowed  money  upon 
him,  and  placed  him  under  the  care  of  his  best  physi- 
cians, who  soon  relieved  him  of  his  malady.  But  it 
was  quickly  discovered  that  the  soldier  had  lost  his 
enterprise  and  courage.  He  no  longer  led  the 
charge.  Formerly  the  very  discomfort  and  suffer- 
ing which  distressed  him  had  driven  him  forth  to 


CO-OPEEATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


163 


every  desperate  endeavor;  now  he  sought  his  ease, 
for,  as  he  remarked  to  his  comrades,  he  had  some- 
thing worth  living  for — health,  home,  family,  and 
other  comforts,  and  life  under  these  conditions  was 
too  valuable  to  risk.  Such  is  the  peril  of  prosperity, 
— an  ignoble  content,  a cowardly  conservatism,  a 
base  materialism,  a self-centered  satisfaction  with 
things  as  they  are,  a blind  indifference  to  the  com- 
pulsion of  great  causes,  a regard  for  the  body  of 
things  and  a contempt  for  their  soul.  Above  all, 
because  of  its  prosperity  and  promise  of  material 
good,  America  needs  the  offices  of  religion. 

Toward  this  land  of  plenty,  as  to  another  Canaan, 
the  peoples  of  the  older  world,  oppressed  by  poverty, 
are  flowing  in  a steady  stream  of  a million  or  more  a 
year.  As  an  ever-increasing  proportion  of  this  im- 
migration comes  from  the  south  and  east  of  Europe, 
the  problems  which  it  offers  grow  more  acute  and 
grave.  What  are  we  to  do  with  these  eager  folk  who 
press  upon  us,  ignorant,  most  of  them,  of  our  lan- 
guage and  of  our  institutions,  with  contrary  social 
and  political  traditions  and  ideals,  and  of  another 
spiritual  heritage?  What,  rather,  are  they  to  do 
with  us?  Are  these  unassimilated  masses  to  despoil 
our  institutions  and  remove  our  landmarks,  and  to 
make  of  the  descendants  of  the  Puritans  strangers 
in  an  alien  land?  And  what  shall  we  say  of  the 
10,000,000  negroes  whose  ancestors  immigrated 


164 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


against  their  will,  and  who  now  share  our  inheri- 
tance? No  scheme  of  colonization  will  solve  this 
problem:  they  are  here  to  stay.  The  day  is  not 
very  far  distant  when  these  10,000,000  will  have 
become  20,000,000.  We  cannot  hope  that  the  masses 
of  the  negro  population  can  remain  in  ignorance, 
living  in  squalor  and  poverty,  without  the  contam- 
ination of  such  conditions  spreading  throughout  the 
commonwealths  in  which  they  reside.  We  cannot 
have  ignorance,  or  poverty,  or  vice  anywhere  in  the 
community  without  its  affecting  the  entire  popula- 
tion. Add  to  these  elements  that  go  to  make  up  the 
urgent  problem  of  American  life,  the  pitiful  necessi- 
ties of  the  Indian  wards  of  the  nation;  the  menace  of 
Mormonism;  and  the  growing  numbers  of  those  who 
come  to  us  from  Mohammedan  lands,  from  the 
minarets  of  whose  more  than  threescore  temples  on 
this  continent  there  daily  sounds  the  muezzin’s  call 
to  prayer;  and  we  may  see  how  large  looms  the  task 
committed  to  the  evangelical  churches  of  America. 

Similar  and  related  to  this  problem  of  a complex 
population  is  the  engrossing  and  insistent  problem 
of  the  American  city,  to  which  the  larger  propor- 
tion of  our  immigration  flows.  To-day  the  city 
dominates  our  civilization, — socially,  politically,  and 
religiously.  Whereas  in  1800  one  in  twenty  of  the 
population  dwelt  in  the  city,  in  1900  the  proportion 
was  one  in  three;  and  with  the  development  of  our 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


165 


manufactures  it  will  not  be  long  before  one-half  of 
the  people  will  assuredly  be  found  residing  in 
municipalities.  Already  one-half  of  the  population 
of  the  Empire  State  lives  in  New  York  City.  Not 
Springfield,  but  Chicago,  is  the  political,  and  social, 
and  commercial  capital  of  Illinois.  America  gets 
its  ideals  from  the  city:  as  goes  the  city,  so  goes  the 
nation.  If  there  is  corruption  in  the  city,  the  whole 
body  politic  suffers.  If  the  saloon  rules  the  city,  the 
country  will  not  escape.  If  the  government  of  our 
cities  is  the  scandal  of  American  life,  then  republican 
institutions  the  nation  over  are  imperiled.  If  there 
is  contempt  for  law  there,  the  power  of  the  law 
languishes  elsewhere.  The  political  problem  is 
largely  a city  problem.  A Christian  civilization  is 
on  trial  in  the  city.  And  if  the  city  church  fails,  we 
cannot  hope  to  redeem  that  failure  by  conquests  in 
the  town  and  countryside. 

Such  conditions  are  a challenge  to  the  faith  and 
consecration  of  the  Christian  Church;  and  it  is 
becoming  increasingly  evident  that  no  single  com- 
munion is  sufficient  to  meet  them.  To  these  vast, 
unassimilated  masses  in  the  very  center  of  our 
population,  who  come  to  us  from  other  lands,  there 
must  be  brought  the  finest  products  of  a Christian 
civilization.  If  these  are  to  be  Americanized,  a large 
share  in  the  task  will  devolve  upon  the  Church. 
With  a magnificent  optimism.  Senator  Hoar  of  Massa- 


166  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

chusetts,  shortly  before  his  death,  declared,  “I  believe 
that  if  all  Americans  of  native  birth  should  die  to- 
morrow, the  masses  who  have  come  to  us  from  other 
shores  may  be  trusted  to  preserve  and  carry  to  suc- 
cess the  spirit  of  American  institutions;”  but  such 
hopefulness  would  be  only  complacent  folly  unless 
adequate  efforts  are  made  to  imbue  these  millions 
with  that  spirit  in  its  best  estate.  The  negro  must 
be  evangelized  and  taught,  the  Indian  protected  from 
his  weaknesses  and  his  enemies,  Mormonism  checked 
and  its  venom  extracted,  and  the  frontier  com- 
munities molded  and  inspired  by  the  influences  of 
religion.  The  island  possessions  of  the  new  America, 
moreover,  must  be  evangelized.  Competition  in 
these  high  tasks  is  folly;  the  competitive  spirit  de- 
feats its  own  ends.  Only  co-operation  can  win 
America  for  Christ. 

The  pioneer  among  agencies  which  have  applied 
themselves  to  the  solution  of  these  problems  is  the 
American  Sunday-School  Union,  whose  fruitful 
service  has  extended  over  the  last  98  years.  Believ- 
ing that  through  an  interdenominational  rather  than 
a denominational  effort  the  Christian  Church  can 
most  effectively  reach  the  isolated  and  neglected 
rural  districts  all  over  the  United  States,  it  has  sent 
its  missionaries  into  the  remotest  corners  of  the  land, 
rallying  the  Christian  forces,  however  small  or  crude, 
and  planting  union  Sunday-schools  to  serve  as  the 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


167 


nuclei  of  Christian  activity.  The  annual  report  of 
the  Union  for  1915  describes  the  labors  of  ten  dis- 
trict superintendents,  under  whom  are  224  general 
or  local  missionaries  serving  fields  each  covering  from 
one  to  a dozen  counties.  These  missionaries  are 
constantly  engaged  in  studying  religious  condi- 
tions in  their  fields,  especially  in  rural  and  isolated 
districts.  Where  such  communities  are  without 
Sunday-schools,  interest  is  aroused  by  house-to- 
house  visitation,  teachers  and  officers  are  enlisted, 
and  Sunday-schools  organized.  During  the  year 
covered  by  this  report,  these  field  workers  organized 
1,368  new  schools  and  reorganized  687.  Many  an 
abandoned  church  has  been  rehabilitated  through 
the  organization  within  it  of  such  a union  Sunday- 
school.  “Not  infrequently,”  declares  the  report 
for  1914,  “in  communities  where  two  denominational 
churches  have  been  closed  for  years,  the  missionary, 
by  determining  ‘not  to  know  anything  among  you 
save  Jesus  Christ  and  him  crucified,’  brings  the 
people,  who  in  the  past  had  been  in  different  de- 
nominations, into  one  united  congregation,  identi- 
fied with  a denomination  of  their  own  choosing.” 
Seventy-eight  congregations  were  organized  last 
year  and  transferred  from  the  care  of  the  American 
Sunday-School  Union  to  denominational  control. 
The  pioneer  work  could  have  been  only  non- 
denominational  in  the  true  sense,  since  these  78 


168 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


churches  were  divided  among  14  different  denomina- 
tions. 

The  organization  through  which  the  Home  Mis- 
sion Boards  of  the  Protestant  churches  of  America 
are  seeking  to  correlate  their  missionary  forces  is  the 
Home  Missions  Council.  Organized  as  recently  as 
1908,  it  is  now  composed  of  representatives  of  33 
societies  and  boards  connected  with  21  distinct  de- 
nominations, embodying  nine-tenths  of  the  nation- 
ally organized  home  mission  forces.  This  organization 
holds  regular  meetings  twice  a year  for  the  considera- 
tion of  great  administrative  questions,  and  through 
its  special  committees  and  deputations  seeks  to  de- 
termine the  facts  that  compose  the  home  mission 
problem,  and  to  further  co-operative  effort.  The 
spirit  in  which  it  pursues  its  task  is  evident  in  the 
principles  which,  in  conjunction  with  the  Commis- 
sion on  Home  hlissions  of  the  Federal  Council  of 
Churches  of  Christ  in  America,  it  has  lately  formu- 
lated and  recommended  to  the  Home  Mission 
Boards  of  the  denominations  co-operating.  It  in- 
structs its  representatives: 

1.  To  confer  with  like  officers  of  other  Home  Mission 
Societies  or  Boards  and  arrange  to  allot  the  entirely  unoccu- 
pied fields  among  the  various  bodies  so  that  each  shall  feel  a 
special  responsibility  for  given  fields. 

2.  To  deeline  application  for  Home  Mission  aid  at  any 
place  where  the  gospel  of  Christ  is  earnestly  and  adequately 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


169 


promulgated  by  others  and  where  assured  prospects  of 
growth  do  not  seem  to  demand  the  establishment  of  other 
churches. 

At  least  ten  of  the  national  Home  Mission  Socie- 
ties and  Boards,  including  all  but  one  of  the  large 
denominations,  have  given  their  explicit  endorse- 
ment to  these  principles.  While  the  spirit  of  the 
administrative  officers  of  all  the  leading  boards  is 
in  full  harmony  with  such  a program,  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  there  are  multitudes  of  people,  ministers, 
missionaries,  and  laymen,  in  every  communion,  who 
have  not  yet  reached  an  equal  height  and  breadth  of 
view.  It  is  the  membership  at  large  which  de- 
termines the  actual  policy  to  be  pursued  even  within 
denominations  that  are  least  democratic  in  polity. 
That  this  is  still,  in  many  quarters,  directed  along 
the  old  competitive  lines,  is  not  so  much  the  fault  of 
the  leaders  as  of  the  local  administrators  at  the 
front. 

The  organization  of  the  Home  hlissions  Council 
has  made  possible  a co-operative  study  of  the 
various  elements  that  compose  the  home  mission 
problem.  During  1914,  for  example,  the  Council’s 
Committee  on  Immigrant  Work  conducted  an  exten- 
sive inquiry  concerning  the  immigrant  population  of 
the  United  States,  including  in  its  surveys  the  Bo- 
hemians, Poles,  and  Magyars,  and,  less  completely, 
the  Finns,  Croatians,  Serbs,  Armenians,  and  other 


170 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


nationalities.  The  results  of  these  studies  not  only 
revealed  the  meagerness  of  the  total  work  carried 
on  by  the  allied  denominations,  but,  in  the  words  of 
the  committee,  “made  renewedly  clear  the  irrele- 
vancy of  our  denominational  distinctions  in  this 
field,  save  as  in  a few  cases  the  people  ministered  to 
come  from  nations  having  a considerable  Protestant 
tradition.” 

For  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  home  mis- 
sion enterprise,  it  has  become  possible,  also,  through 
the  Council,  to  make  careful  and  comprehensive 
investigations  of  particular  sections  of  the  country 
to  determine  the  conditions  actually  existing  and  the 
genuine  needs  of  the  fields.  These  studies  or  sur- 
veys, made  during  1913  and  1914,  were  initiated  by 
a deputation  of  board  secretaries  in  a series  of  “con- 
sultations” with  members  of  state  boards  and  com- 
mittees, state  and  district  superintendents,  and  other 
field  administrators  of  home  mission  work  in  15  of 
the  western  states.  After  the  preliminary  consul- 
tation, each  conference  selected  a state  survey  com- 
mittee composed  of  representatives  of  each  religious 
body  co-operating,  wFo  have  been  publishing  the 
results  of  their  investigations  in  a series  of  bulletins. 
The  first  deals  with  a general  survey  of  the  entire 
territory  under  observation,  including  those  states 
in  which  the  largest  proportion  of  the  funds  con- 
tributed to  the  treasuries  of  home  mission  boards 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


171 


and  national  societies  are  applied  in  various  forms  of 
evangelization  and  church  extension.  Later  bulle- 
tins are  devoted  to  the  results  of  more  intensive  sur- 
veys of  Oregon,  North  Dakota,  Colorado,  Northern 
California,  and  Washington.  WTiile  the  region  ex- 
amined embraces  almost  one-half  of  our  continental 
territory,  only  13.7  per  cent,  of  the  total  population 
is  now  found  within  it;  and  while  the  average  den- 
sity of  population  for  the  country  at  large  is  30.9 
per  square  mile,  that  for  this  region  is  only  8.8. 
During  the  past  decade  this  vast  territory  has  in- 
creased its  population  at  a rate  double  that  of  the 
increase  of  the  country  as  a whole,  and  evidently  will 
soon  include  a population  commensurate  with  its 
size.  Thus  is  suggested  something  of  the  “civiliza- 
tion-building, and  the  consequent  strain  upon  social 
institutions,  which  this  region  will  experience  in  the 
next  few  decades.”  Not  one  of  the  states  under 
observation  shows  a percentage  of  Protestant  church 
membership  to  population  equal  to  that  for  the 
country  taken  as  a whole,  while  six  of  the  states 
show  Roman  Catholic  percentages  exceeding  that 
for  the  entire  country. 

Considerable  attention  has  been  given  in  an 
earlier  chapter  to  the  “overlapping”  of  religious 
agencies.  This  is  a serious  condition,  occasioning 
waste  of  money,  time,  and  energy.  It  is  also  the 
cause  of  much  hostile  criticism  of  the  Chureh  and  its 


172 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


methods.  But  reports  of  its  prevalence  may  easily 
be  exaggerated  and,  as  a matter  of  fact,  the  surveys 
of  the  Home  Missions  Council  indicate  that  on  the 
frontier,  at  least,  it  is  a negligible  factor  in  its  effect 
upon  the  efficiency  of  American  Christianity  com- 
pared with  that  of  “overlooking,”  or  the  neglect 
by  all  denominational  forces  of  large  sections  of  the 
population.  In  an  investigation  of  the  state  of 
Colorado,  made  within  a few  years  by  the  Com- 
mission on  Home  Missions  of  the  Federal  Council, 
while  many  instances  of  an  unwise  reduplication  of 
church  organizations  were  discovered, — such  as  that 
of  a town  of  400  people  with  four  churches,  all  sup- 
ported by  home  mission  aid, — 133  communities  were 
reported,  ranging  from  150  to  1,000  souls,  without 
Protestant  churches  of  any  name,  100  of  them  being 
also  without  a Roman  Catholic  church. 

The  study  of  15  states  undertaken  by  the  Home 
Missions  Council  was  appropriately  called  “The 
Neglected  Fields  Survey.”  Of  one  of  the  states  it 
is  reported  that  it  may  be  conservatively  estimated 
that  at  least  458  school  districts  have  groups  of 
people  living  more  than  four  miles  from  the  nearest 
church,  and  that  these  groups  comprise  at  least 
32,796  persons.  From  a township  in  this  state  with 
a population  of  300  the  report  was  received,  “There 
is  not  a church  of  any  kind  in  the  township,  nor  any 
religious  services  of  any  kind.  There  are  only  about 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


173 


20  Catholics  and  20  Lutherans  who  profess  any  relig- 
ion.” Such  conditions  are  common  in  most  of  the 
states  surveyed.  Of  the  districts  in  Oregon  report- 
ing, 54.1  per  cent,  have  no  church  or  Sunday-school 
activities,  and  it  is  estimated  that  33,000  school 
children  in  the  state  reside  in  districts  not  supplied 
with  organized  religious  work.  “I  have  lived  here 
11  years,”  writes  one  correspondent,  “and  I think 
there  have  not  been  more  than  seven  sermons 
preached  in  this  district  in  that  time.”  Others 
report  not  having  had  services  in  15  or  20  years. 
“It  is  safe  to  say,”  states  the  report  for  Colorado, 
“making  allowances  for  the  fact  that  returns  were 
received  from  only  55  per  cent,  of  the  districts  in  the 
state,  that  at  least  25,000  or  30,000  people  in 
Colorado  live  more  than  four  miles  by  a practicable 
route  of  travel  from  the  nearest  church.  Naturally 
many  of  these  people  live  in  small  communities  scat- 
tered over  a large  area,  making  church  work,  as  it 
is  usually  done,  impracticable.  However,  that  is 
not  true  of  all,  as  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  one 
district  with  a population  of  716  reports  ‘seven  or 
eight  saloons,  no  church,  one  service  per  month;’ 
and  another,  with  a population  of  460,  reports  that 
‘the  saloon  is  doing  all  that  is  being  done.’” 
“Throughout  Washington  and  Oregon,”  writes 
Dr.  Ward  Platt,  of  conditions  prevailing  seven  years 
ago,  “may  be  found  scores  of  narrow  valleys  teem- 


174  THE  UNION  OF  CHBISTIAN  FORCES 

ing  with  people.  No  one  is  doing  anything  for  them 
religiously,  as  but  little  is  attempted  by  any  church 
for  Washington  or  Oregon  outside  the  towns.  In 
southwestern  Oregon  is  a county  of  about  1,500 
square  miles  in  which  live  at  least  2,500  people, 
mostly  American;  and  no  denomination,  according 
to  the  report  made  last  year,  is  doing  any  work 
whatever  in  that  whole  county.  They  are  abso- 
lutely without  church  privileges.”^  One  in  charge 
of  a large  field  in  western  Washington  declares, 
that  “in  his  division  only  209  towns  out  of  1,146 
have  church  organizations,  leaving  937  towns  and 
villages  without  any  religious  privileges  whatever. 
Over  half  the  children  in  western  Washington  have 
never  been  enrolled  in  a Sunday-school.  The  whole 
region  is  in  its  infancy  and  is  developing  with 
astounding  rapidity.”  “Where  in  this  race,”  asks 
Dr.  Platt,  “is  the  Church  of  God?” 

It  ought  to  be  said,  however,  that  since  these 
statements  were  made  by  Dr.  Platt,  conditions 
in  this  section  of  the  country  have,  without  doubt, 
much  improved  as  the  field  has  been  more  fully 
occupied  by  evangelizing  agencies.  During  the  four 
years  closing  in  1914,  the  American  Sunday-School 
Union  alone  has  increased  the  number  of  its  mis- 
sionaries in  Washington,  Oregon,  and  Idaho  to  11. 
Through  their  efforts  400  new  Sunday-schools  were 


* Ward  Platt,  The  Frontier,  p.  106. 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


175 


organized,  with  1,400  teachers  and  almost  12,000 
pupils;  prayer-meetings  and  young  people’s  societies 
were  established  in  large  numbers,  and  over  1,000 
persons  professed  conversion.  Out  of  the  Sunday- 
schools  thus  established,  14  churches  of  different 
denominations  were  organized.  That  deplorable 
need  of  further  efforts  still  exists,  however,  in  many 
districts  of  the  far  West  is  indicated  in  the  follow- 
ing summary  in  the  report  of  the  Neglected  Fields 
Survey  Committee  to  the  Home  Missions  Council 
at  its  meeting  in  1914:  ‘Tn  Oregon  30.7  per  cent, 
of  the  districts  sending  in  returns  have  churches  and 
Sunday-schools;  in  North  Dakota,  27.7  per  cent.; 
in  Colorado,  26.6  per  cent.;  in  California  (northern 
portion),  28  per  cent.;  in  Washington,  32.7  per 
cent.  While  many  districts  reporting  failed  to 
reply  to  the  question  as  to  whether  there  was  im- 
mediate religious  activity,  the  percentages  of  those 
definitely  reporting  no  religious  activity  are:  in 
Washington,  40.1  per  cent.;  in  California  (northern 
portion),  36.9  per  cent.;  in  Colorado,  25.4  per  cent.” 

The  final  report  of  the  committee  which  directed 
these  surveys,  made  to  the  Council  at  its  meeting 
in  1915,  declared  that,  “in  the  6,515  school  districts 
reported  upon,  the  best  state  had  44  per  cent,  with- 
out any  kind  of  a church  or  Sunday-school,  and  the 
worst  64  per  cent.;  and  that  each  state  showed  from 
25,000  to  47,000  people  living  more  than  four 


176 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


miles  from  any  church.”  “Perhaps  more  signifi- 
cant,” the  report  continues,  “is  the  fact  that  even 
where  churches  of  some  kind  are  reported,  it  is 
shown  that  they  are  not  pouring  through  the  com- 
munity a continuous  stream  of  life.  Thirty-five 
per  cent,  of  them  hold  less  than  four  services  a 
month.  But  even  of  those  which  have  more  or  less 
preaching,  a large  proportion  are  without  continuous 
ministry.  From  31  to  51  per  cent,  have  no  resident 
pastors.” 

It  was  to  study  and  to  meet  such  conditions  by 
concerted  action  that  the  Home  Missions  Council 
was  organized.  It  is  not  the  intention  of  the  Coun- 
cil to  foster  the  organization  of  union  or  interde- 
nominational churches,  since,  as  it  believes,  the  his- 
tory of  such  organizations,  deprived  of  denomina- 
tional influence  and  control,  is  not  encouraging. 
Wherever  churches  should  be  combined,  the  Coun- 
cil recommends  that  it  be  done  by  the  method  of 
reciprocal  exchange  between  denominations,  ac- 
cording to  the  method  described  in  the  preceding 
chapter;  with  provision  for  receiving  into  associate 
or  full  membership  in  such  denominational  organiza- 
tions the  members  of  any  other  communion  as  shall 
make  them  truly  community  churches.  Yet  the 
Council  does  not  take  upon  itself  the  function  of 
interfering  in  the  disposition  of  the  affairs  of  indi- 
vidual churches:  it  can  do  no  more  than  make 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


177 


recommendations,  leaving  local  adjustments  to  be 
administered  by  those  upon  the  field.  It  is  not  the 
purpose  of  the  Council  to  decrease  or  hinder  the 
work  of  any  denomination,  but  rather  to  stimulate 
the  activities  of  every  Christian  body,  and  to  en- 
courage particular  denominations  to  enter  specified 
fields  that  are  unoccupied  or  neglected.  It  advo- 
cates no  theoretical  scheme  of  Christian  unity,  but 
stands  for  the  most  practical  forms  of  co-operative 
effort  that  are  immediately  possible.  It  seeks, 
moreover,  to  systematize  and  correlate  those  forms 
of  work  in  which  the  denominations  are  already 
engaged  in  common,  as,  for  example,  educational 
work  for  the  Indians,  and,  where  possible,  to  employ 
a single  agency  for  tasks  better  accomplished  by 
union  effort,  as  is  instanced  in  the  appointment  by 
the  Council  of  a traveling  evangelist  among  the 
Hindus  in  America. 

In  the  effort  to  devise  a plan  for  co-operative  ac- 
tion, in  view  of  the  facts  revealed  by  the  “Survey  of 
Neglected  Fields,”  a series  of  conferences  was  held 
by  the  committee  in  six  western  states  during  1914, 
with  results  the  importance  of  which  for  the  future 
of  the  home  mission  enterprise  can  hardly  be  over- 
estimated. A federation  for  the  more  effective 
conduct  of  home  missions  was  instituted  in  every 
state,  or  existing  federations  further  developed. 
The  plan  projected  in  Utah,  which  has  already 
12 


178 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


been  adopted  by  all  of  the  state  and  national  boards 
and  ecclesiastical  bodies  affected  by  it  that  have 
thus  far  taken  definite  action  upon  it,  and  upon 
whose  favorable  consideration  its  initiation  de- 
pends, is  of  the  utmost  significance  as  indicating  the 
trend  of  the  new  co-operative  principle  of  our  home 
mission  agencies.  In  outline,^  the  plan  calls  for 
the  organization  of  a Utah  Interdenominational 
Commission,  to  be  composed  of  two  persons  ap- 
pointed by  the  state  organization  ofiicially  repre- 
senting each  religious  body  co-operating,  a secretary 
of  each  supporting  national  board  having  ex  officio 
membership.  To  this  Commission  general  policies 
of  co-operative  work  within  the  state  are  to  be  sub- 
mitted for  advisement,  and  by  it  sums  to  be  used 
in  the  co-operative  work  are  to  be  determined,  and 
such  other  duties  discharged  as  shall  be  jointly 
assigned  by  the  co-operating  religious  bodies.  In 
addition,  a Utah  Home  Mission  Workers’  Council 
is  contemplated,  to  be  composed  of  four  workers 
chosen  by  each  religious  body  co-operating,  this 
Council  “to  promote  co-operative  work  in  the  field, 
advise  in  the  adjustment  of  differences,  arrange  for 
the  effective  use  of  funds  assigned  to  the  co-operative 
budget,  and  increase  by  all  practicable  means  the 
efficiency  of  the  work  of  all  the  co-operating  agen- 
cies throughout  the  state.”  It  is  proposed  to 


1 Report  of  Home  Missions  Council  for  1915,  p.  129. 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


179 


organize  also  an  Annual  Utah  Workers’  Institute  of 
three  or  more  days’  duration,  to  be  of  an  educational 
character,  designed  to  inspire  and  train  workers  for 
eflScient  service,  open  to  every  ordained  minister, 
mission-school  teacher,  or  other  worker  in  the  state, 
with  the  necessary  expense  of  attendance  to  be  paid 
in  every  case  by  such  methods  as  each  denomination 
may  adopt.  It  is  provided  in  the  plan  that  “action 
of  the  Council  affecting  established  home  mission 
policies,  enlargement  of  co-operative  budgets,  or  the 
relations  of  denominations,  shall  be  undertaken  only 
after  the  concurrence  of  the  Commission.”  Finally, 
it  is  agreed  that  the  plan  “does  not  contemplate  the 
curtailing  of  denominational  autonomy,  nor  encroach 
upon  the  prerogative  of  the  ecclesiastical  bodies  co- 
operating, except  as  herein  provided,  or  as  each  and 
all  may  later  agree.” 

This  plan,  if  successfully  instituted,  appears  to  be 
adapted  to  bring  the  dream  of  a co-operative  Chris- 
tendom down  from  heaven  to  earth.  Foreign  j\Iis- 
sion  agencies,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  following  chap- 
ter, possess  the  instrument  through  which  their 
efforts  may  be  correlated  and  unified.  The  Home 
Missions  Council  suffices  to  bring  together  the 
leaders  in  home  mission  endeavor,  and  makes  pos- 
sible the  formulation  of  broadly  inclusive  plans. 
The  great  deficiency  has  been  the  lack  of  a plan  by 
which  the  co-operative  spirit  could  be  conveyed  to 


180 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


the  point  of  actual  application  to  specific  religious 
tasks.  The  actual  responsibility  for  the  expensive 
and  wasteful  competitive  methods  prevalent  particu- 
larly in  rural  communities  rests,  for  the  most  part, 
upon  state  denominational  organizations,  and  these, 
in  most  instances,  are  carrying  on  their  work  without 
systematic  co-operation  in  the  occupation  of  fields, 
or  even  conference  with  one  another.  In  a few 
states,  as  in  Maine,  state  federations  of  churches 
concern  themselves  with  particular  problems  of 
comity  and  co-operation,  but  such  federations,  in 
general,  are  so  loosely  organized  that  they  are  in 
constant  danger  of  degenerating  into  select  coteries 
for  the  ineffective  if  innocuous  discussion  of  doc- 
trinal agreements  and  differences.  There  is  impera- 
tive need  either  that  larger  discretionary  and  execu- 
tive powers  shall  be  delegated  to  such  federations  for 
the  settlement  of  particular  questions  of  comity  and 
co-operation  as  they  arise,  or  that,  by  some  sueh 
plan  as  that  of  Utah,  those  responsible  for  the  direc- 
tion of  denominational  efforts  within  the  state  shall 
regularly  meet  for  the  discussion  and  mutual  adjust- 
ment of  the  projects  and  methods  of  their  de- 
nominations, and  for  the  correlation  of  the  forces 
which  they  control. 

Thus  the  Home  Missions  Council  is  breaking  out 
new  paths  in  the  field  of  interdenominational  co- 
operation. It  is  making  it  possible  for  the  de- 


CO-OPERATION  IN  HOME  MISSIONS 


181 


nominations  included  within  it  thoroughly  to  study 
the  facts  that  enter  into  the  home  mission  problem 
as  no  single  denomination  is  able  to  study  them,  and 
then  to  plan  a united  campaign  to  disseminate 
knowledge  of  the  facts  and  to  meet  the  needs  that  are 
disclosed.  It  involves  no  slackening  of  the  bonds 
of  denominational  loyalty  or  loss  in  the  force  of  de- 
nominational conviction.  But  it  is  based  on  the 
assumption  that  the  character  of  the  differences  that 
separate  the  affiliated  denominations  is  not  such  as 
to  prevent  co-operation  in  the  tremendous  task  of 
the  evangelization  of  the  continent,  and  that  it  is 
not  essential  to  the  spiritual  welfare  of  America  that 
the  entire  population  should  become  Methodist  or 
Presbyterian,  or  members  of  any  particular  denomi- 
nation, so  long  as  all  are  Christian,  and  the  springs 
of  national  and  personal  life  are  purified  and  sweet- 
ened. It  is  a long  step  forward  that  the  churches 
are  definitely  agreed  that  God  does  not  plan  to  save 
America  by  means  of  any  one  denomination,  and 
that  a broader  avenue  has  been  discovered  along 
which  the  forces  of  Protestant  Christianity  may 
march  together. 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN 
MISSION  FIELD 


Extent  and  difficulties  of  the  foreign  missionary  effort. — 
Heathen  themselves  impressed  with  conflicting  Christian 
teachings. — Oriental  Christians  not  interested  in  causes  and 
conditions  that  gave  birth  to  the  various  denominations. — 
A new  spirit  of  co-operation:  its  nature  and  possibilities. — 
Development  of  Christian  unity  on  mission  fields  as  indicated 
in  reports  of  Continuation  Committee  Conferences  in  India, 
China,  Korea,  and  Japan. — Attitude  of  the  churches  in  the 
East  toward  denominational  supervision. — Work  of  co-op- 
eration in  the  fields  of  Christian  education  and  medicine. — 
Co-operation  between  foreign  missionary  organizations  in 
America. — ^Unity  among  churches  of  the  East  greatest  in- 
fluence for  co-operation  at  home. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


CO-OPEKATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MIS.SION  FIELD 

It  is  against  the  dark  background  of  the  needs 
of  heathenism  that  the  real  significance  and  the 
cost  of  the  divided  state  of  Christendom  are  most 
clearly  revealed.  The  churches  of  Christ  are 
definitely  committed  to  the  task  of  evangelizing 
1,000,000,000  souls,  massed  in  great  centers  of 
population,  or  widely  scattered  over  vast  tracts  of 
territory,  and  spread  over  every  zone  from  the  icy 
coasts  of  the  Esquimos  to  the  tropic  jungles  of 
Africa  and  the  frozen  islands  of  the  southernmost 
seas.  The  gospel  of  Christ  must  be  interpreted 
into  each  language  and  racial  temperament  until 
every  man  upon  the  earth  may  hear  the  truth  in  the 
tongue  to  which  he  was  born.  The  missionary  must 
penetrate  into  tropical  regions  where  existence  is 
almost  impossible  for  men  reared  in  the  temperate 
zone,  prejudiees  must  be  removed,  institutions  must 
be  organized,  a new  spiritual  atmosphere  must  be 
created,  and  the  great  streams  of  racial  development 
must  be  turned  into  new  channels. 

It  is  a titanic  enterprise,  the  most  stupendous 
undertaking  that  has  ever  appealed  to  the  soul  of 

185 


186 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


man.  Obviously  it  will  tax  the  resources  of  the 
entire  Church  to  the  utmost.  If  all  Christians  every- 
where should  join  in  cordial  co-operation,  marching 
together  as  one  great  army  in  a single  campaign,  so 
distributing  their  forces  as  to  economize  time,  and 
effort,  and  money,  minimize  prejudice  and  opposi- 
tion, and  utilize,  to  the  highest  degree  of  eflficiency, 
all  the  armament  of  Christendom,  marshaling  the 
combined  resources  of  the  Church  with  a superlative 
strategy,  and  meeting  the  solid  front  of  heathenism 
with  a united  and  unshaken  vigor  of  attack,  the 
most  hopeful  might  even  then  despair  at  times  and 
the  stoutest  hearts  lose  courage.  Yet,  among  the 
obstacles  that  oppose  the  progress  of  the  gospel  of 
Christ  among  heathen  peoples,  one  of  the  greatest 
is  the  lack  of  union  among  the  forces  that  are  en- 
gaged in  the  propaganda. 

Not  only  must  the  missionaries  meet  the  natural 
and  inevitable  prejudice  that  confronts  a new  and 
strange  philosophy,  and  all  the  inertia  of  spiritual 
lethargy,  but  they  must  labor  against  the  misunder- 
standings and  confusion  that  they  are  themselves 
forced  to  introduce  through  the  presentation  of 
various  and  conflicting  t^'pes  of  the  religion  which 
they  seek  to  inculcate.  It  is  not  uncommon  to-day 
for  missionaries  to  be  bidden  by  heathen  folk  first 
to  reconcile  their  own  differences  before  seeking  to 
win  converts  to  their  faith, — a sitviation  sure  to  be 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  187 


more  often  met  as,  with  the  wider  spread  of  Chris- 
tianity, heathen  opposition  grows  stronger  and 
more  intelligent.  “Which  is  the  bigger  God,” 
asked  a chief  in  Africa,  “the  Presbjderian  God,  or 
the  Baptist  God,  or  the  Methodist  God?”  “What 
is  the  answer,”  asks  a friend  of  the  missionary  en- 
terprise, “to  the  Japanese  nobleman  crossing  the 
public  square  of  Tokio,  who,  urged  to  become  a 
Christian,  sweeps  his  hand  about  the  square  where 
a score  or  more  missionary  agencies  have  their 
homes,  and  asks,  ‘Which  Christianity?’  ” Is  it  any 
wonder  that  the  heathen  peoples  stand  dismayed 
upon  the  threshold  of  the  temple  of  the  new  religion 
that  claims  the  right  to  displace  their  ancestral 
faiths,  at  the  multiplicity  of  varieties  and  the  differ- 
ences and  divisions  among  those  who  already  worship 
at  its  altars,  and  the  diverse  and  often  discordant 
voices  that  appeal  from  its  pulpits?  To  which  of 
these  is  their  allegiance  to  be  given,  and  whom  must 
they  believe?  “The  world  will  never  be  converted 
by  a disunited  church.”^  At  a conference  of  Chris- 
tian workers  recently  held  in  China,  a Chinese  leader 
said,  “In  our  town  are  four  different  translations 
of  the  Bible,  and  they  cause  great  trouble  by  reason 
of  their  differences.”  A physician  rose  and  re- 
marked, “I  have  just  come  from  the  sick-bed  of  a 
man  who  had  had  eleven  native  physicians  who  had 


■ William  Milligan,  The  Resurrection  oj  Our  Lord,  p.  202. 


188 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


each  left  a different  prescription.  The  patient  had 
not  taken  any  one  of  them.  I am  for  Christian 
unity.” 

It  is  inevitable  that  the  causes  responsible  for  the 
division  of  the  Church  into  various  bodies  in  Chris- 
tian lands  should  fail  to  impress  the  minds  of  those 
of  other  races  of  so  different  a spiritual  heritage  and 
history.  It  is  impossible  that  these  should  enter 
sympathetically  into  the  struggles  and  sacrifices  and 
toils  which  have  been  the  price  of  spiritual  freedom. 
They  discern  only  the  differences  that  have  resulted, 
devoid  of  the  glow  and  warmth  borrowed  from  the 
circumstances  of  their  origin  and  history,  and  the 
contemplation  of  them  leaves  the  converts  from 
heathenism  unmoved  and  cold.  No  enthusiasm  of 
loyalty  unites  the  heart  of  the  Chinaman  to  a de- 
nominational banner  inscribed  with  the  name  of  a 
geographical  division  of  a territory  remote  from  his 
own,  and  which  has  no  meaning  whatsoever  when 
transported  across  the  sea.  It  excites  no  pride  in 
his  heart  to  be  a member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  South,  especially  if  the  Chinese  members 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  North  are 
situated  to  the  south  of  him.  Bishop  Thoburn 
has  expressed  the  amusement,  mingled  with  sad- 
ness, with  which  he  heard  an  almost  naked 
Hindu  Christian  assert  that  he  was  a “Scotch 
Presbyterian!” 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  189 


The  rising  spirit  of  nationalism  in  every  Asiatic 
land  finds  no  satisfaction  in  such  artificial  distinc- 
tions imported  from  abroad.  It  is  as  unjust  as  it  is 
unwise  to  seek  to  impose  upon  these  Eastern  peoples 
distinctions  and  divisions  which,  however  much  they 
may  mean  to  those  among  whom  they  originated, 
can  never  mean  anything  to  them  but  the  shibbo- 
leths of  a strife  in  which  they  have  had  no  share  and 
can  have  no  interest.  The  churches  beyond  the  seas 
have  not  been  w'on  by  the  proclamation  of  our 
points  of  difference,  but  by  the  gospel  that  we  hold 
in  common.  The  native  Christians  of  China  who 
laid  down  their  lives  by  the  thousand  in  the  dreadful 
days  of  the  Boxer  riots  would  not  have  died  for  a 
form  of  baptism,  nor  for  a scheme  of  church  polity, 
nor  for  a liturgy,  nor  for  a theory  of  the  validity  of 
ecclesiastical  orders;  but  they  refused  to  trample 
upon  the  figure  of  a rude  cross  traced  on  the  ground, 
though  their  lives  were  required  as  the  alternative 
offered  in  exchange,  lest  they  dishonor  the  Lord  of 
Christendom!  For  the  Christ  of  the  Cross  multi- 
tudes even  dared  to  die!  It  is  always  the  Saviour 
that  attracts  and  unites,  and  human  interpretations 
and  obscurations  of  him  that  repel  and  divide.  The 
only  bond  that  holds  the  Oriental  to  the  particular 
denomination  in  which  he  is  enrolled  is  the  fact  that 
this  denomination,  rather  than  another,  brought  him 
to  Christ. 


190 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


As  a matter  of  fact,  the  names  of  many  of  the  de- 
nominations do  not  find  corresponding  terms  in  the 
languages  of  some  of  the  lands  to  which  they  are 
carried  into  which  they  can  be  translated,  and  have 
to  be  taken  over  bodily  by  transliteration,  and  the 
distinctions  which  they  convey  are  in  many  cases  so 
foreign  to  the  habits  of  thought  of  such  peoples  that 
they  never  grasp  their  true  significance.  The  real 
evils  from  which  the  nations  suffer  are  impurity, 
social  inequality,  and  despair.  The  African  and  the 
Korean  feel  their  need  of  the  Christ  as  soon  as  they 
understand  him,  for  only  Christ  can  reveal  the  char- 
acter of  God  and  thus  rebuke  impurity;  only  Christ 
can  teach  the  brotherhood  of  man  and  so  redeem  the 
outcast;  and  only  Christ  can  lift  the  veil  from  the 
future  and  exchange  hope  for  hopelessness.  But 
they  do  not  feel  the  need,  nor  discern  the  force  of 
the  fine  distinctions  of  doctrines  for  which  de- 
nominationalism  stands.  Why  should  the  con- 
science of  the  new-born  convert  be  burdened  with  a 
mass  of  Aberglaube  which  can  neither  save  nor 
condemn? 

Further,  if  it  were  not  for  the  pressure  exerted 
from  the  home  lands,  the  native  Christians  among 
these  far-away  peoples  would  speedily  unite.  ‘We 
should  have  one  united  Chinese  Church  in  China,” 
said  a native  leader  there,  “but  the  Mandarins  in 
America  will  not  permit  it.”  Dr.  A.  J.  Brown  refers 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  191 


to  “the  grim  remark  of  an  East  Indian  pastor  that, 
‘were  it  not  for  the  vigilance  of  the  Western  shep- 
herds, the  Indian  sheep  would  some  fine  morning 
be  all  found  in  one  fold.’  ” A Chinese  clergyman, 
the  same  author  reports,  in  a union  meeting  of  the 
churches  about  Nanking,  arose  and  said,  as  he 
pointed  in  turn  to  several  missionaries,  “You  are  an 
American  Presbyterian;  and  you  can’t  help  it,  for 
you  were  brought  up  that  way.  You  are  a Cana- 
dian Methodist;  and  you  can’t  help  it,  for  you  were 
brought  up  that  way.  You  are  an  English  Church- 
man; and  you  can’t  help  it  either,  for  you  were 
brought  up  that  way.  But  we  are  Chinese  Chris- 
tians, and  we  do  not  propose  to  permit  you  men  from 
abroad  to  keep  us  apart.’’  The  new  nationalism 
which  is  w'orking  like  yeast  in  China  and  India  to 
unify  and  energize  these  peoples,  and  which  has  al- 
ready done  its  work  in  Japan,  is  impatient  with  a 
foreign  church  imposed  upon  it  from  without. 
Where  native  churches  have  been  well  established, 
the  missionaries  soon  find  that  they  must  learn  to 
be  content  to  be  simply  the  advisers  and  guides  of  a 
Christian  community  determined  to  develop  along 
lines  characteristic  of  its  own  civilization,  and  in 
forms  indigenous  to  it.  And  that  such  is  the  case 
every  true  missionary  rejoices,  for  the  hope  of 
heathenism  lies  in  the  development  of  a truly  native 
church,  with  an  energy  and  an  enthusiasm  derived 


192 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


immediately  from  the  one  Lord  of  the  Church.  The 
anxiety  of  the  missionary  is  only  lest  the  churches  of 
Asia  should  demand  their  freedom  before  they  have 
developed  a native  leadership  fitted  to  guide  it. 

“If  we  want  to  win  the  heathen  world  to  Christ,” 
said  Phillips  Brooks,  after  his  missionary  tour 
around  the  world,  “we  must  not  go  to  them  as 
Episcopalians,  Presbyterians,  Methodists,  or  Bap- 
tists: we  must  go  to  them  simply  as  Christians.” 
Dr.  John  R.  Mott  said  to  the  great  Edinburgh 
Missionary  Conference  that  the  union  of  the 
Church  would  mean  more  than  the  doubling  of  the 
missionary  force.  The  difiiculties  in  the  way  of  the 
unification  of  the  forces  upon  missionary  fields  are 
great;  but  if  the  foregoing  statement  is  true,  every 
possible  effort  should  be  made  to  surmount  them. 

The  denominations  which  have  been  instrumental 
in  founding  mission  churches  are  not  to  blame  for  the 
introduction  of  their  distinctive  and  divisive  prin- 
ciples into  missionary  lands.  Such  was  the  inevit- 
able consequence  of  the  denominational  system. 
Any  other  course  would  have  been  Impossible  a 
century  ago.  The  noble  ideal  of  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society,  founded  in  1795,  and  composed  of 
Presbyterians,  Independents,  and  members  of  the 
Church  of  England,  failed  because  it  was  too  far 
in  advance  of  its  times.  It  declared  its  design  to  be 
“not  to  send  Presbyterianism,  Episcopalianism,  or 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  193 

any  form  of  church  government  (about  which  there 
may  be  differences  of  opinion  among  serious  persons), 
but  the  glorious  gospel  of  the  blessed  God  to  the 
heathen,  and  that  it  shall  be  left  (as  it  ought  to  be 
left)  to  the  minds  of  the  persons  whom  God  may  call 
to  the  fellowship  of  his  Son  from  among  them,  to 
assume  for  themselves  such  form  of  church  govern- 
ment as  to  them  shall  appear  most  agreeable  to  the 
word  of  God.”  Later,  however,  as  the  missionary 
enterprise  grew  in  extent,  the  Episcopalians  and  the 
Presbyterians  withdrew  to  form  missionary  organi- 
zations of  their  own.  Nevertheless  this  broad  con- 
ception may  prove  to  have  been  prophetic  of  the 
missionary  method  yet  to  be,  though  in  that  age 
it  was  impossible. 

When  we  survey  the  missionary  field  to-day,  it  is 
evident  that  a new  spirit  of  co-operation  is  flowing 
in  everywhere  like  a flood.  And  something  of  what 
the  character  of  that  co-operation  is  to  be  when  it 
is  consummated  is  also  becoming  evident.  It  can- 
not come  through  compromise : it  must  come 
through  comprehension.  The  distinctive  convic- 
tions for  which  the  various  denominations  stand  can- 
not be  cast  aside  like  an  outworn  cloak  without 
strain  to  conscience  and  consequent  loss  of  spiritual 
power.  But  together  with  fidelity  to  distinctive 
principles  there  may  and  must  be  a new  emphasis 
upon  the  things  held  in  common  as  the  essential 
13 


194 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


and  permanent  message  of  the  Church.  It  is  not 
essential  that  churches  should  be  organized  upon 
the  basis  of  their  peculiarities.  It  is  possible  to 
create  a more  inclusive  fellowship  to  which  each 
company  of  believers  shall  bring  its  particular  inter- 
pretation of  the  Christ  and  add  it  to  the  common 
store.  “In  essentials  unity,  in  non-essentials  liberty, 
and  in  all  things  charity”  is  the  motto  for  a united 
Church  at  home  and  abroad.  Toward  such  an 
ideal  the  forces  upon  the  foreign  field,  impelled  by 
an  appalling  need  and  by  the  genius  of  the  peoples 
among  whom  they  labor,  are  earnestly  striving. 
A missionary  leader,  recently  returned  from  a tour 
in  China  and  Japan,  reports  that  he  met  in  con- 
ference five  Christian  professors  in  the  Doshisha 
University  who  united  in  the  expression  of  belief 
that,  while  the  essence  of  Christianity  is  bound  to 
prevail  in  Japan,  Western  ecclesiastical  forms  and 
institutions  will  not  prevail  there. 

Meanwhile,  as  we  wait  for  the  realization  of  an 
ideal  unity,  there  must  be  a larger  measure  of  co- 
operation in  the  survey  of  unoccupied  fields,  a more 
strict  division  of  territory  among  the  missionary 
agencies,  a freer  exchange  of  members  between  all 
types  of  churches,  and  a closer  affiliation  of  all  forms 
of  service  where  co-operation  or  union  is  already 
possible.  In  mission  lands,  as  at  home,  federation 
will  precede  organic  unity.  There  is  not  a Baptist 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  195 


and  a Presbyterian  materia  medica,  nor  has  any 
single  denomination  a monopoly  of  the  multiplica- 
tion table.  Hospitals  and  medical  schools  are  com- 
ing together  everywhere,  and  in  primary  and  second- 
ary schools,  wherever  these  can  be  administered 
more  economically  by  uniting  with  other  schools  of 
a similar  character  of  another  denomination,  con- 
solidation is  being  promoted.  In  the  higher  schools 
and  colleges,  and  even  in  theological  seminaries,  the 
same  tendency  is  evident.  The  work  of  publication, 
in  many  centers,  is  accomplished  for  several  denom- 
inations through  a single  agency.  Thus  is  the  way 
being  cleared  for  the  closer  spiritual  unity  that  shall 
clearly  fulfil  the  prayer  of  our  Lord. 

The  reports  of  the  Continuation  Committee  Con- 
ferences in  Asia,  held  in  India,  China,  Korea,  and 
Japan,  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  John  R.  Mott  dur- 
ing 1912-1913,  indicate  the  notable  progress  of 
recent  years  both  in  the  growth  of  the  spirit  of 
Christian  unity  and  in  its  practical  exemplification 
upon  the  missionary  field.  In  the  oflicial  reports  of 
each  of  the  local  conferences  held  at  Madras,  Bom- 
bay, Jubbulpore,  Allahabad,  and  Calcutta,  reference 
is  made  to  the  wide-spread  desire  on  the  part  of  the 
native  Christians  of  India,  especially  among  the 
better  educated,  “for  the  development  of  one  united 
Indian  Church.”  At  the  India  National  Confer- 
ence in  Calcutta  the  following  minute  was  adopted: 


196 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


“This  Conference  is  of  the  opinion  that  there  is  un- 
doubtedly a strong  desire  on  the  part  of  many  of 
the  leaders  of  the  Indian  Christian  community  for  a 
comprehensive  church  organization  adapted  to  the 
country.  While  the  community  as  a whole,  as 
might  be  expected  from  its  origin  and  history,  can- 
not be  said  to  have  shown  any  strong  and  wide- 
spread desire  in  this  direction,  neither  can  it  be  said 
that  there  is  anything  within  the  community  itself 
which  would  militate  against  the  realization  of  such 
an  ideal.  This  Conference,  therefore,  considers  that 
every  facility  should  be  afforded  for  the  spread  and 
development  of  this  desire  in  the  Indian  community 
at  large.  While  this  Conference  believes  that  the 
Indian  Church  should  continue  to  receive  and  ab- 
sorb every  good  influence  which  the  Church  of  the 
West  may  impart  to  it,  it  also  believes  that  in  respect 
of  forms  and  organization  the  Indian  Church  should 
have  entire  freedom  to  develop  on  such  lines  as  will 
conduce  to  the  most  natural  expression  of  the  spirit- 
ual instincts  of  Indian  Christians.” 

At  each  of  the  local  conferences  in  India  steps  were 
taken  for  the  organization  of  provincial  Federal 
Councils,  and  at  the  National  Conference  it  was 
recommended  that  there  be  formed  a National  Mis- 
sionary Council  of  India,  the  objects  of  which  were 
declared  to  be:  (a)  To  co-operate  with  the  pro- 
vincial Councils  in  the  carrying  out  of  their  objects; 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  197 

(b)  to  be  in  communication  wnth  the  Continuation 
Committee  of  the  Edinburgh  Missionary  Confer- 
ence regarding  such  matters  as  require  considera- 
tion or  action  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  Indian 
mission  field  as  a whole;  (c)  to  take  into  considera- 
tion such  other  questions  affecting  the  entire  mis- 
sionary field  as  may  seem  to  it  desirable;  (d)  to 
make  provision  for  the  convening  of  an  All-India 
Missionary  Conference  when  such,  in  the  opinion 
of  the  Council,  is  desirable. 

Everywhere  in  India  there  is  manifest  a desire  for 
the  more  active  promotion  of  comity  and  co-opera- 
tion through  a more  strict  delimitation  of  territory, 
in  the  transfer  of  mission  workers,  and  in  the  treat- 
ment of  persons  under  discipline;  and  by  the  National 
Conference  it  was  declared  to  be  desirable  “that  spir- 
itual hospitality  be  offered  to  persons  of  whatever 
denomination  who  may  find  themselves  in  an  area 
in  which  the  ministrations  of  their  own  communion 
are  not  procurable.”  Co-operation  in  all  forms  of 
education  was  advocated  in  every  Conference,  and 
all  Christians  everywhere  are  urged,  in  the  words  of 
the  National  Conference,  “to  be  instant  in  believing 
prayer  to  the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  that  he  will  vouchsafe  speedily  to  accom- 
plish his  gracious  purpose  and  hasten  the  day  when 
the  prayer  of  our  Redeemer  may  be  fulfilled,  and  all 
his  people  be  perfected  into  one.” 


198 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


The  reports  of  the  Conferences  in  China  tell  a 
similar  story.  “We  recognize,”  declares  the  Canton 
Conference,  “that  the  Chinese  Church,  both  as 
regards  her  leaders  and  the  majority  of  her  mem- 
bership, is  strongly  in  favor  of  one  Church,  open 
to  all  Christians,  and  is  making  a more  or  less  con- 
scious effort  to  realize  that  aim.  This  does  not  mean 
that  there  will  be  a uniform  statement  of  faith,  or 
identity  in  forms  of  worship,  or  one  central  govern- 
ment, but  that  there  will  be  an  attempt  to  make  this 
a truly  Christian  Church,  which  in  all  its  constit- 
uent parts  will  comprehend  the  whole  Christian 
life  of  the  nation.  . . . Our  faith  is  in  the  guiding 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  who  will  safeguard  the  essential 
liberty  of  the  constituent  parts  of  the  Church.  He, 
too,  will  enable  us  to  share  as  a common  possession 
the  benefits  of  those  varied  attainments  in  truth, 
faith,  and  practice  which  each  denomination  holds  as 
a sacred  trust  received  by  the  grace  of  our  one  Lord. 
While,  however,  the  Chinese  Church  should  con- 
tinue to  receive  and  absorb  every  good  influence 
which  the  Church  of  the  West  can  impart,  it  should, 
in  respect  of  forms  and  organization,  have  entire 
freedom  to  develop  in  accord  with  the  most  natural 
expression  and  largest  cultivation  of  the  spiritual 
instincts  of  Chinese  Christians.”  The  Shanghai 
Conference  declared : ‘We  can  set  before  the  Church 
in  China  no  lower  ideal  than  that  of  a manifest  and 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  199 


organic  unity.  It  should  include  all  those  within 
the  Chinese  nation  who  hold  the  truth  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  But  this  unity  must  be  a result  of 
spiritual  growth  rather  than  of  outward  organiza- 
tion. Organization  should  be  expressive  of  the 
growth  in  unity  of  life.” 

There  seems  to  have  been  general  agreement  in  all 
the  Conferences  that  the  first  step  toward  the  organic 
unity  desired  is  the  federation  of  existing  churches 
for  mutual  counsel  and  co-operation.  “The  differ- 
ences which  now  characterize  us,”  said  the  Shanghai 
Conference,  “are  not  the  results  of  wilful  disobe- 
dience, and  will  doubtless  disappear  as  we,  by  united 
counsel  and  work,  understand  each  other  better  and 
attain  to  a fuller  conformity  to  the  mind  of  Christ. 
We  believe  that  the  way  to  unity  will  open  as  we 
patiently  study  the  Scriptures,  the  past  history  of  the 
Church,  and  the  living  experiences  of  the  various 
present  sections  of  the  Church.”  The  Conferences  at 
Tsinan-fu,  Peking,  and  Hankow  expressed  their  con- 
victions in  practically  identical  terms.  A National 
Conference  on  Faith  and  Order,  a central  Business 
Agency  for  all  China,  Boards  of  Arbitration  for  all 
China,  fuller  co-operation  in  all  educational  enter- 
prises are  among  the  plans  suggested  for  the  cor- 
relation of  all  the  forces  in  China  engaged  in  mis- 
sionary work,  while  from  every  one  goes  forth  an 
earnest  call  for  united  intercession  that  the  prayer 


200 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  the  Lord  for  the  unity  of  his  Church  may  be  ful- 
filled. 

Finally,  the  purpose  of  the  Christians  in  China 
is  summed  up  in  the  findings  of  the  China  National 
Conference  at  Shanghai  in  words  whose  significance 
can  hardly  be  overestimated:  “In  order  to  do  all 
that  is  possible  to  manifest  the  unity  which  already 
exists  among  all  faithful  Christians  in  China,  and  to 
present  ourselves  in  the  face  of  the  great  mass  of 
Chinese  non-Christian  people  as  one  brotherhood 
with  one  common  name,  this  Conference  suggests 
as  the  most  suitable  name  for  this  purpose.  . . . 
‘The  Christian  Church  in  China.’  ” The  Conference 
proceeds  to  recommend  as  steps  toward  a larger 
unity,  the  uniting  of  churches  of  similar  ecclesiastical 
order;  the  organic  union  of  churches  which  already 
enjoy  intercommunion;  federation,  local  and  pro- 
vincial, of  all  churches  willing  to  co-operate  in  the 
extension  of  the  kingdom  of  God;  the  formation  of 
a National  Council  of  the  Churches;  the  fresh  study 
by  all  Christians  of  the  faith  and  order  of  those  who 
differ  from  them,  and  intercession  for  the  increase 
of  the  spirit  of  unity. 

The  Seoul  Conference,  conducted  by  the  continua- 
tion Committee,  recounts  with  gratitude  the  progress 
that  has  been  made  during  the  last  decade  in  unify- 
ing and  federating  the  work  of  the  missions  and 
churches  in  Korea:  “The  union  hjTun-book;  a 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  201 


common  name  as  applicable  to  most  of  the  churches; 
the  formation  of  a Federal  Council  of  Evangelical 
Missions,  and  of  an  Educational  Federation;  union 
in  the  Severance  Hospital  Medical  School,  and  in 
other  educational  institutions;  co-operation  in  the 
Tract  Society,  the  Bible  Committee,  and  in  other 
forms  of  work;  the  division  of  territory  arranged 
among  six  of  the  principal  missions  and  correspond- 
ing churches;  the  union  of  the  work  of  four  Presby- 
terian Missions  into  one  Presbji;erian  Church;  and 
the  federation  of  the  two  Methodist  missions,  show 
that  much  has  been  accomplished.”  The  belief  is 
expressed  that  “all  look  forward  to  a closer  degree 
of  formal  organization,  whatever  be  the  means 
through  which  the  Spirit  of  God  may  lead.” 

Japan  is  not  so  far  advanced  in  the  direction  of 
organic  unity  as  are  China  and  Korea;  nor  is  the 
desire  for  a national  church  that  shall  include  Chris- 
tians of  every  name  as  evident  as  in  India.  “The 
tendency  of  Christianity  in  Japan  at  present,”  de- 
clared the  Japan  National  Conference,  “is  toward  the 
maintenance  of  separate  churches,  in  their  organiza- 
tion patterned  after  those  in  the  West;  but  for  the 
purpose  of  co-operation  in  v;ork  of  common  interest 
an  organization  has  been  formed  which  is  known  as 
the  Federation  of  Churches  in  Japan.  The  Federa- 
tion is  composed  of  churches  comprising  four-fifths 
of  the  Protestant  Christians  in  Japan,  and  there  are 


202 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


indications  that  the  churches  comprising  the  remain- 
ing one-fifth  may  enter  the  organization  in  the  near 
future.”  “It  is  the  sincere  hope  and  earnest  prayer 
of  every  Christian  man  and  woman,”  it  was  stated 
by  the  Tokio  Conference,  “that  all  the  churches  rep- 
resenting Christianity  in  Japan  may  come  together 
and  be  made  one  in  Christ,  with  one  faith,  one  order, 
and  one  work;  but  we  think  it  will  be  some  time  be- 
fore this  high  ideal  can  be  realized.” 

It  is  in  part,  perhaps,  because  in  China  such  great 
distances  separate  the  mission  stations  from  one 
another,  that  federation  there  has  been  upon  inter- 
denominational rather  than  upon  denominational 
lines,  whereas  in  Japan  the  reverse  has  been  the  case; 
but  it  is  evident  that  the  sense  of  national  unity  that 
is  spreading  so  widely,  and  impressing  itself  so 
deeply  among  all  the  peoples  of  the  East,  is  making 
more  definitely  year  by  year,  even  in  Japan,  for  a 
national  Church  that  shall  clearly  set  forth  to  the 
world  the  essential  unity  of  all  believers  in  Christ. 
That  the  problem  of  Christian  unity  is  not  so  burn- 
ing a question,  as  yet,  in  Africa  arises  from  the  lack  of 
a common  consciousness,  such  as  is  found  in  the 
East,  among  the  scattered  tribes  of  that  great  con- 
tinent. 

Already  upon  the  mission  fields,  in  individual  in- 
stances, further  advance  toward  the  ideal  of  a united 
Church  has  been  made  than  can  be  found  anywhere 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  203 


among  Western  nations.  The  West  China  Missions 
Advisory  Board,  which  publishes  two  monthlies,  one 
in  English  and  one  in  Chinese,  has  achieved  actual 
union  in  certain  educational  enterprises,  notably  in 
a most  successful  union  Middle  School  in  Cheng-tu; 
and  is  definitely  working  toward  the  ideal  of  one 
Protestant  Christian  Church  in  West  China,  with  a 
single  declaration  of  faith  as  a common  basis  for 
church  membership.  Federation  Councils  are  al- 
ready organized  and  at  work  in  at  least  12  of  the  18 
provinces  of  China.  In  the  Philippine  Islands  the 
Evangelical  Union,  organized  in  1901  for  the  purpose 
of  securing  comity  and  efficiency,  has  abundantly 
justified  its  existence,  and  the  territory  has  been 
divided  among  the  various  societies  working  there, 
who  are  laboring  together  harmoniously  toward  a 
closer  and  more  effective  affiliation.^  A large  pro- 
portion of  the  missionary  field  has  been  now  divided 
by  agreement  between  the  missionary  agencies  into 
similar  spheres  of  influence  and  responsibility. 

The  remarkable  intellectual  awakening  which  the 
Orient  is  experiencing  has  emphasized  the  necessity 
for  schools  and  colleges  larger  in  number  and  in 
capacity,  and  of  a higher  grade  than  individual 
communions  are  able  to  furnish.  Both  economy  and 
efficiency  are  demanding  that  denominational  agen- 

1 For  further  examples  see  the  Report  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign 
Missions  of  the  Federal  Council,  December,  1912,  and  Dr.  A.  J.  Brown. 
Unity  and  Missions^  Chapters  X.  and  XI. 


204  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

cies  shall  unite  in  the  establishment  and  support  of 
secondary  schools  in  the  larger  centers;  and  if  the 
Christian  college  and  university  are  not  to  relin- 
quish the  primacy  which  they  have  enjoyed  hither- 
to, and  to  be  surpassed  in  scholarship  and  equip- 
ment by  the  non-Christian  institutions  that  are 
rising  on  every  hand,  denominations  must  combine 
their  educational  resources.  In  Peking  the  Method- 
ist, Presbyterian,  and  English  and  American  Con- 
gregational Boards  are  uniting  in  the  development 
of  a single  university  scheme  with  one  union  insti- 
tution of  each  academic  type.^  With  a similar 
statesmanship  union  universities  are  being  devel- 
oped in  Tsinan-fu,  Nanking,  and  Cheng-tu  in  China, 
and  in  strategic  centers  in  other  Asiatic  lands.  In 
China  alone  there  are  already  about  30  educational 
institutions  under  interdenominational  control. 

More  difficult  are  the  problems  attending  theo- 
logical education.  In  the  home  land  theological 
seminaries  of  an  interdenominational  character  are, 
for  obvious  reasons,  exceedingly  rare.  On  the 
foreign  field,  however,  co-operation  in  even  this  form 
of  education  is  being  found  practicable.  Dr.  A.  J. 
Browm  reports  that  “there  are  interdenominational 
theological  seminaries  or  training-schools  for  Chris- 
tian workers  in  Manila  (Methodist  and  Presbyte- 
rian), Seoul  (Northern  and  Southern  Methodist; 


■ Dr.  A.  J.  Brown,  Unity  and  Missions,  p.  159. 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  205 


Northern,  Southern,  Australian,  and  Canadian 
Presbyterian),  Peking  (English  and  American  Con- 
gregational, and  American  Presbyterian),  Nanking 
(Northern  and  Southern  Methodist,  Northern  and 
Southern  Presbyterian,  and  Disciples),  Shan-tung 
(English  Baptist,  and  American  Presbjderian), 
Bangalore  (United  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  Re- 
formed Presbyterian  Church  of  America,  London 
Missionary  Society,  American  Board,  and  Wesleyan 
Missionary  Society),  and  Canton  (English  and 
American  Congregationalists;  American,  Canadian, 
and  New  Zealand  Presbj^derians;  English  Wesley- 
ans,  and  United  Brethren).  In  Australia,  the 
Moravians  and  the  Presbyterians  have  agreed  on  a 
plan  by  which  the  former  train  missionaries  for  the 
mission  to  the  aborigines  of  North  Queensland,  and 
the  latter  control  and  support  them.”  ‘‘The  ex- 
periment of  union  theological  instruction,”  declares 
Dr.  Brown,  “begun  about  a dozen  years  ago,  not 
without  misgivings,  has  proved  to  be  a signal  suc- 
cess, and  no  difficulties  whatever  have  emerged  that 
are  worth  mentioning  in  comparison  with  the  bene- 
fits that  have  accrued.  Foreign  missionaries  have 
demonstrated  that  union  in  theological  instruction 
is  entirely  practicable.”^ 

In  the  field  of  medical  education,  co-operation  be- 
tween denominations  is  more  easily  secured.  There 


206 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


are  no  diseases,  not  even  spiritual  diseases,  peculiar 
to  particular  denominations.  Sanitation  and  hy- 
giene are  the  handmaids  of  the  most  diverse  theol- 
ogies, and  in  the  sick-room  or  by  the  bedside  of  the 
dying,  “distinctive  principles”  are  out  of  place.  In 
China,  in  particular,  union  medical  schools  and  hos- 
pitals are  multiplying.  The  largest  and  most  widely 
known  of  these  is  the  Union  Medical  College  in 
Peking,  in  which  the  London  Missionary  Society, 
the  American  Presbyterian  Mission,  the  American 
Board,  Peking  University  (Methodist),  the  Lon- 
don Medical  Missionary  Association,  and  the 
Church  of  England  Mission  co-operate.  At  Han- 
kow, Nanking,  Canton,  and  Shan-tung  similar  insti- 
tutions are  either  established  or  in  process  of  organi- 
zation.' In  the  Philippine  Islands  Baptists  and 
Presbyterians  are  uniting  in  the  management  of  the 
best  hospital  in  the  territory. 

It  is  possible  that  this  is  to  be  the  crowning  con- 
tribution of  Eastern  Christianity  to  the  West, — the 
rich  return  of  the  Orient  for  the  labors  and  treasures 
expended  by  the  churches  of  the  Occident  upon  the 
other  side  of  the  globe, — an  example  of  Christian 
unity  such  as  shall  provide  the  strongest  stimulus 
ever  given  to  the  unification  of  Christian  forces  at 
home.  Already  the  necessities  of  the  foreign  mis- 

' Dr.  J.  B.  Neal,  “Union  Medical  Colleges  in  China,”  in  The  Christian 
Work,  May  22,  1915,  p.  665. 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  207 


sionary  enterprise  and  the  spirit  of  unity  upon  mis- 
sion fields  have  drawn  the  agencies  of  the  churches 
at  home  into  close  co-operation.  The  greatest 
obstacle  to  unity  on  the  foreign  field  has  always 
been  disunity  among  the  churches  at  the  home  base. 
The  China  National  Conference,  to  which  reference 
has  been  made,  adopted  a resolution  which  the 
churches  of  America  would  do  well  to  heed:  “Inas- 
much as  co-operation  between  the  missionary  bodies 
working  on  the  field  is  rendered  almost  impossible 
without  the  sanction  of  the  Home  Boards,  this  Con- 
ference recommends  that  the  China  Continuation 
Committee  endeavor  to  bring  about  a greater  meas- 
ure of  co-operation  between  the  Mission  Boards  at 
home.”  Thus  do  the  children  admonish  their 
parents! 

A large  measure  of  unity  among  the  agencies  of 
the  denominations  at  home  has,  however,  already 
been  secured.  For  20  years  the  representatives  of 
all  foreign  missionary  organizations  in  America  have 
met  in  annual  conference  to  consider  such  questions 
as  comity,  co-operation,  the  forces  needed  for  the 
evangelization  of  the  world,  the  division  of  territory, 
the  place  of  the  native  Church,  the  relations  of  mis- 
sionaries to  the  native  populations,  and,  indeed,  all 
questions  of  a common  interest.  Similar  confer- 
ences have  lately  been  organized  in  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland  and  in  Germany.  The  Laymen’s 


208 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Missionary  Movement,  the  Missionary  Education 
Movement,  and  the  Missionary  Volunteer  Move- 
ment are  all  of  them  organizations  of  an  interde- 
nominational character  whose  object  it  is,  not  to  send 
out  missionaries,  but  to  foster  missionary  interest 
and  to  spread  missionary  information  throughout 
all  denominations. 

There  is  no  service  in  which  Christians  can  engage 
that  can  draw  them  together  in  a fellowship  so  strong 
as  does  the  missionary  cause.  Here  men  meet  on  a 
level  higher  than  their  denominational  divisions  and 
find  themselves  at  one.  Upon  the  platform  of  the 
evangelization  of  the  world  all  Christians  can  stand 
together,  and  there  they  feel  most  keenly  the  bonds 
that  unite  them.  The  Laymen’s  Missionary  Move- 
ment in  America  has  brought  the  men  of  the  churches 
together  as  no  organization  with  a smaller  or  less 
inspiring  purpose  could  possibly  have  done.  The 
great  Missionary  Conference  held  in  Edinburgh  in 
1910,  the  seventh  of  a series  of  such  conferences, 
interdenominational  and  international,  that  date 
back  to  1854,  might  well  be  called  “Ecumenical,” 
for  it  was  the  nearest  approach  to  an  all-inclusive 
gathering  that  Protestantism  has  ever  seen.  No 
other  cause  could  have  called  together  so  repre- 
sentative a body.  And  the  Continuation  Com- 
mittee, appointed  by  the  Conference  to  carry  out 
the  lines  of  work  projected  by  it,  is  perhaps  the 


CO-OPERATION  ON  THE  FOREIGN  MISSION  FIELD  209 

mightiest  single  influence  in  the  world  to-day  mak- 
ing for  co-operation  and  unity  among  the  forces  of 
Christendom.  For  13  years  the  Missionary  Educa- 
tion Movement,  controlled  by  a board  chosen  by 
American  home  and  foreign  missionary  societies  in 
co-operation,  has  been  providing  text-books  for  mis- 
sion study  classes  and  other  literature  of  a high 
order  for  the  use  of  all  denominations  in  common, 
and  hundreds  of  thousands  have  gained  a new 
knowledge  of  the  missionary  enterprise  through  its 
activities.  The  necessities  of  the  missionary  cause 
furnish  the  mightiest  argument  for  Christian  co- 
operation and  unity  that  the  Church  has  ever  faced. 

Thus  still  another  illustration  is  furnished  of  the 
truth,  that  it  is  in  service  performed  together,  and 
not  in  the  discussion  of  their  points  of  difference, 
that  Christians  of  every  name  and  type  are  discover- 
ing how  wide  and  deep  is  the  measure  of  unity  that 
already  exists  among  them,  and  how  far-reaching  are 
the  possibilities  of  a union  still  more  real  and  strong. 
“There  has  never  been  a time,”  truly  says  the  Com- 
mittee on  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Federal  Council, 
“since  the  German  Reformation,  when  various  de- 
nominations were  so  closely  engaged  in  co-operative 
measures  for  promoting  the  kingdom  of  Jesus  Christ 
among  the  nations.  There  has  never  been  a period 
since  the  beginning  of  modern  missions  when  de- 
nominational differences  were  so  minimized  and  the 


14 


210 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


great  fundamental  truths  of  our  blessed  religion  were 
so  universally  emphasized,  and  we  advance  together 
for  the  conquest  of  the  world  for  Christ.  More  and 
more  the  united  front  of  Christianity  is  presented 
to  the  united  opposition  of  Islam  and  paganism,  and 
only  when  this  union  is  practically  complete  may  one 
expect  to  achieve  the  victory  sought.”^ 

1 Report  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Missions  at  the  Second  Quadrennial 
Council,  December,  1912. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


Mere  federation  not  sufficient. — Organic  unity  traced 
through  entire  history  of  the  Church. — Conditions  to-day 
more  conducive  than  ever  to  organic  unity. — Experiments 
in  actual  Church  union  cited. — Proposed  World  Conference: 
Its  origin  and  purpose;  Relation  of  the  Roman  Catholic  and 
Greek  Orthodox  Churches  to  the  movement. — Ultimate 
union  of  all  Christian  forces  must  be  preceded  by  unification 
of  denominational  divisions;  Results  already  accomplished. 
— Union  of  certain  denominations  being  attempted  in  many 
parts  of  the  world. — Various  denominational  branches  in 
America  tending  toward  a new  type  of  polity  and  worship. 


CHAPTER  IX 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 

Valuable  as  has  been  the  service  rendered  by  the 
federation  of  the  churches  to  the  cause  of  the  King- 
dom, the  conviction  is  steadily  growing  that  some- 
thing more  is  necessary  if  the  prayer  of  the  Lord  for 
the  unity  of  his  disciples  is  to  be  fulfilled. 

There  are  many  Christian  men,  without  a doubt, 
who  have  no  desire  for  any  degree  of  unity  closer 
than  federation  can  supply.  They  think  habitually 
in  terms  of  churches,  never  in  terms  of  the  Church. 
They  have  no  expectation  nor  hope  that  the  eccle- 
siastical fragments  with  which  Christendom  is 
strewn  will  ever  be  gathered  into  a single  basket. 
The  ideal  of  a catholicity  one  day  to  be  visible 
seems  to  such  neither  possible  nor  desirable.  To 
them  denominationalism  is  not  a temporary  ex- 
pedient, nor  a recourse  made  necessary  by  the  mis- 
fortunes of  Christian  history,  but  the  expression  of 
the  Christian  ideal;  and  such  a federation  of  de- 
nominations as  is  exemplified  in  the  Federal  Council 
of  Churches  of  Christ  in  America  is  to  them  the  last 
word  upon  the  subject  of  Christian  unity.  “There 
never  will  be  a time,”  writes  President  Strong  of  the 

213 


214 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


University  of  Kansas,  “when  the  Christian  body 
will  not  be  organized  in  different  groups.”  “To  let 
denominations  decay,”  says  Dr.  Shailer  Mathews, 
now  President  of  the  Federal  Council,  “would  be  to 
let  churches  decay.  What  we  are  getting  now  is  a 
co-operative  Protestantism.  ...  I am  not  writing 
in  a spirit  of  sectarianism,  but  as  one  who  recog- 
nizes that  the  denominations  are  economically 
necessary  to  the  development  of  a really  effective 
Protestantism.” 

There  are,  however,  many  signs  that  the  Christian 
consciousness  of  our  day  cannot  be  so  easily  satis- 
fied. The  process  of  federation  has  already  gone  too 
far  if  the  churches  are  not  to  go  farther.  There  will 
be  an  inconsistency  in  many  of  the  activities  in 
which  the  spirit  of  unity  is  expressing  itself,  as  long 
as  the  imperialistic  claims  of  the  individual  de- 
nominations to  the  exclusive  possession  of  essential 
truth  are  unabated.  The  policy  of  interdenomina- 
tional comity,  reciprocal  denominational  exchanges 
of  churches  in  over-churched  communities,  and  the 
division  of  unoccupied  territory,  both  at  home  and  on 
the  foreign  mission  field,  into  districts  wherein  par- 
ticular denominations  are  invited  to  labor  with  the 
assurance  of  non-interference  on  the  part  of  others, 
seems  to  be  definitely  accepted  and  established. 
But  note  what  this  involves.  If  the  differences  be- 
tween evangelical  denominations  are  sufficient  to 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


215 


make  organic  unity  impossible  without  the  sur- 
render of  essential  truth,  then  they  are  sufficient  to 
make  both  inconsistent  and  wrong  the  concessions 
that  are  necessary  for  such  division  of  responsibility 
for  the  vital  activities  of  evangelism  and  religious 
education.  No  denomination  which  sincerely  be- 
lieves another  to  be  so  lacking  in  knowledge  of  the 
truth  as  to  make  organic  unity  with  it  impossible 
has  a right  deliberately  to  commit,  either  in  prac- 
tice or  in  theory,  the  souls  of  any  portion  of  the 
world  to  the  exclusive  ministrations  of  that  de- 
nomination. To  do  so  evidently  concedes  that  it  is 
what  the  churches  hold  in  common  that  saves,  and 
not  the  distinctive  principles  of  any  one  of  them,  and 
so  cuts  the  ground  beneath  denominational  divisions. 
The  federated  churches  must  either  go  forward  to- 
ward organic  unity,  or  they  must  retrace  the  steps 
already  taken.  Dr.  Newman  SmjTh  very  truly 
says,  “Federations  of  churches  are  to  be  regarded 
as  at  best  only  way-stations  in  the  progress  of  the 
Church;  the  line  of  development  of  true  Catholicity 
runs  on  and  on,  and  our  denominations  are  called  to 
be  through  passengers.  They  shall  not  otherwise 
finish  their  course  in  faith. 

There  is  to-day,  it  is  true,  as  there  has  always 
been,  an  invisible  catholic  Church,  which  is  held 
together  by  the  mystic  bonds  of  spiritual  fellowship 


1 Passing  Protestantism  and  Coming  Catholicism,  p.  135. 


216 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


that  transcend  all  boundaries  and  divisions.  “Our 
Church,”  says  Prof.  Harnack,  “is  not  the  par- 
ticular church  in  which  we  are  placed,  but  the 
societas  fidei,  which  has  its  members  everywhere, 
even  among  Greeks  and  Romans.”^  This  is  a con- 
ception to  which  the  Christian  heart  has  clung  with 
a persistence  almost  pathetic,  amid  all  the  visible 
disunity  with  which  the  Church  has  been  distracted. 
But  it  is  a conception  that  satisfies  the  Christian 
conscience  less  completely  every  passing  year;  and 
there  is  no  indication  of  the  spirit  of  our  times  more 
evident  or  significant  than  the  yearning  for  some 
new  and  more  universal  order  of  Christianity  in 
which  the  unity  of  the  faith  may  be  visibly  mani- 
fested. It  is  a thought  that  is  rising  simultaneously 
in  a multitude  of  minds  everywhere  throughout  the 
Christian  world,  and  that  is  being  expressed  in  many 
ways. 

The  ideal  of  organic  unity  has  never  been  com- 
pletely lost  from  the  consciousness  of  the  Church. 
The  Pauline  ideal  of  the  Church,  that  he  trans- 
mitted to  the  local  congregations  he  founded,  was 
that  of  one  body  with  many  members,  after  the 
analogy  of  the  human  organism.  “For  in  one 
Spirit,”  he  declares,  “were  we  all  baptized  into  one 
body,  whether  Jews  or  Greeks,  whether  bond  or  free; 
and  were  all  made  to  drink  of  one  Spirit.”*  “Now 

1 What  is  Christianity?  p.  276.  ^ j.  Cor.  12  : 13. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


217 


ye  are  the  body  of  Christ,  and  severally  members 
thereof.”^  The  wonderful  panegyric  of  Christian 
love  with  which  he  follows  the  description  of  the 
organic  unity  of  the  Church  is  meant  to  extol  the 
principle  that  is  necessary  for  its  attainment  and 
maintenance.  The  Church,  even  in  the  period  of 
its  bitterest  contentions,  has  not  lacked  for  prophetic 
souls  whose  voices  have  been  raised  in  the  interest 
of  unity  and  peace.  Calvin  wrote  Cranmer  in  1553, 
“I  should  not  hesitate  to  cross  ten  seas  if  by  this 
means  holy  communion  might  prevail  among  the 
members  of  Christ.”  Said  George  Calixtus,  pro- 
fessor in  the  University  of  Halmstadt,  in  a letter  to 
the  Roman  Catholic  Universities  of  Germany, 
breathing  a tender  spirit  of  reconciliation,  “If  I 
may  but  help  toward  the  healing  of  our  schisms,  I 
will  shrink  from  no  cares  and  night-watchings,  no 
efforts  and  no  dangers  . . . nay,  I will  never  spare 
either  my  life  or  my  blood,  if  so  be  I may  purchase 
the  peace  of  the  Church. Zwingli  and  Melanch- 
thon,  Grotius,  Leibniz  and  Bossuet,  Richard  Bax- 
ter,_Milton,  Wesley,  Jeremy  Taylor,  and  John  Locke 
were  all  of  them  advocates  of  Christian  unity,  at 
times  when  a belligerent  sectarianism  was  tearing 
Christians  apart. 

It  is  true  that  many  an  irenicon  devised  by  large- 

1 1.  Cor.  12  : 27. 

* Quoted  by  Peter  Ainslie,  The  Message  of  the  Disciples,  etc. 


218 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


hearted  leaders  in  the  past  has  eome  to  naught; 
but  is  this  a reason  why,  in  this  generation,  earnest 
men  should  cease  to  pray  and  to  labor  for  the  uni- 
fication of  Christendom?  History  presents  no 
period  so  full  of  encouragement  for  the  friends  of  a 
real  and  visible  unity  of  the  Church.  We  live  in  a 
new  age  wherein  many  of  the  barriers  that  once  kept 
men  apart  have  been  broken  down.  Geographical 
hindrances  have  largely  disappeared : we  are  nearer 
to  England  to-day  than  was  New  York  to  Boston  at 
the  beginning  of  the  last  century.  Modern  methods 
of  travel  and  of  the  intercommunication  of  thought 
are  fast  transforming  the  world  into  a single  com- 
munity. In  America,  at  least,  political  barriers  have 
been  overthrown,  and  free  churches,  in  a free  land, 
meet  each  other  upon  the  same  level,  equal  in  all  their 
privileges.  Theological  bitterness  is  fast  disappear- 
ing and  mutual  respect  and  esteem  are  taking  its 
place.  The  divided  churches  are  being  driven  to- 
gether: they  are  also  being  drawn  together  by  the 
cords  of  love.  The  democratic  and  co-operative 
spirit  of  the  times  provides  an  atmosphere  favorable 
to  the  unification  of  the  churches,  particularly  in  the 
United  States,  where  men  of  so  many  racial  strains 
are  learning  to  live  and  labor  together  and  to  sink 
their  differences  below  the  level  of  the  new  patriot- 
ism that  unites  them.  Prejudices  as  well  as  peoples 
are  in  solution  in  “The  Melting  Pot.” 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


219 


The  utilitarian  and  pragmatic  spirit  of  the  preva- 
lent philosophy,  with  its  appetite  for  theories  that 
“work,”  that  produce  results,  and  its  regard  for  the 
practical,  tends  to  withdraw  interest  from  the  ab- 
stractions that  divide,  and  to  concentrate  it  upon  the 
activities  that  unite.  There  is  less  disposition  to-day 
than  ever  to  judge  institutions  by  their  claims: 
“by  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them.”  Creeds  are 
measured  by  the  same  criterion.  Christians  in  the 
pew  are  willing  to  sacrifice  for  the  spread  of  the 
kingdom  of  God,  but  not  to  perpetuate  divisions  in 
the  Church  unless  some  unquestionably  valid  rea- 
son for  their  perpetuation  can  be  offered.  It  may 
be  that  the  present  halt  in  the  enthusiasm  of  mis- 
sionary propaganda  may  be  due,  not  to  any  failure 
of  interest  in  the  supreme  mission  of  the  Church, 
but  to  a growing  suspicion  that  there  is  something 
fundamentally  wrong  in  the  method  that  the  Church 
is  pursuing.  That  there  are  now  in  America  143 
communions,  every  one  of  which  justifies  its  sepa- 
rate existence  by  the  claim  to  possess  some  distinc- 
tive and  essential  Christian  truth  not  held  by  the 
remainder,  would  seem  to  prove,  if  these  claims 
are  true,  that  there  are  142  necessary  or  valuable 
Christian  principles  lacking  in  each  one  of  the 
denominational  bodies,  which  to  the  ordinary  mind 
proves  too  much,  and  reduces  the  whole  sorry  scheme 
to  absurdity. 


220 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


The  experiments  in  organized  interdenominational 
co-operation,  which  the  nineteenth  century  inaugu- 
rated, prepared  the  way  for  those  experiments  in 
actual  Church  union  which  the  twentieth  century  is 
now  conducting.  In  1804  was  organized  the  British 
and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  followed  in  1816  by  the 
American  Bible  Society.  In  1817  there  was  formed 
in  Philadelphia  “The  Sunday  and  Adult  School 
Union,”  the  real  beginning  of  the  American  Sunday- 
School  Union,  which  took  its  present  name  in  1824. 
The  Evangelical  Alliance  dates  from  1846.  Inter- 
denominational movements  such  as  the  Young 
Men’s  Christian  Association,  the  Young  Women’s 
Christian  Association,  and  the  United  Society  of 
Christian  Endeavor  are  gifts  of  the  last  century  to 
our  own  and  have  powerfully  drawn  the  present 
generation  of  Christians  of  every  name  together. 
The  famous  fourfold  proposals  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  for  the  unity  of  the  Church  were 
issued  at  Chicago  in  1886;  in  1895  the  Congrega- 
tional Churches  of  the  United  States  issued  their 
proposals  of  a similar  character;  in  1893  was  organ- 
ized the  Brotherhood  of  Christian  Unity,  and  in  1895 
the  League  of  Catholic  Unity.  These  events  indicate 
the  point  to  which  the  movement  had  progressed  at 
the  close  of  the  last  century. 

In  1905  was  organized  the  Federal  Council  of 
Churches  of  Christ  in  America,  which,  while  it  does 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


221 


not  advocate  the  principle  of  organic  unity,  is  the 
most  ambitious  experiment  yet  attempted  in  inter- 
denominational co-operation.  In  1910  the  Protes- 
tant Episcopal  Church  appointed  a Joint  Commission 
to  bring  about  a Conference  for  the  consideration 
of  questions  touching  Faith  and  Order,  and  in  the 
same  year  the  National  Convention  of  the  Disciples 
appointed  a Commission  on  Christian  Union,  and  the 
Congregationalists  a Committee  on  Comity,  Federa- 
tion, and  Unity,  while  by  a noteworthy  coinci- 
dence the  Synod  of  the  Dioceses  of  the  Church  of 
England  in  Australia  and  Tasmania  was  simul- 
taneously appointing  a committee  to  “watch  for, 
and,  if  possible,  take  advantage  of  any  opportunity 
which  may  be  offered  for  further  conference  with 
other  religious  bodies  wdth  a view  to  a better  under- 
standing of  our  mutual  position  and  the  further- 
ance of  union  among  Christians.”  Since  that  time 
Commissions  of  a similar  nature  have  been  ap- 
pointed by  the  Presbyterians  (North)  and  by  the 
Church  of  England  in  Canada. 

The  Episcopal  Commission  on  a World  Confer- 
ence has  invited  and  already  secured  the  appoint- 
ment of  co-operating  Commissions  by  more  than 
30  Protestant  bodies,  among  which  several  countries 
are  represented.  In  May,  1913,  a preliminary  con- 
ference of  members  of  a number  of  these  Commis- 
sions was  held  in  New  York  City,  when,  in  a spirit 


222 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


of  the  utmost  candor,  with  a full  realization  of  the 
difficulties  with  which  the  undertaking  is  con- 
fronted, the  first  steps  in  preparation  for  the  calling 
of  such  a World  Conference  were  taken  with  a 
heartiness  and  unanimity  full  of  encouragement  for 
the  future.  According  to  the  resolutions  adopted 
at  this  meeting,  the  conception  of  the  proposed  Con- 
ference is  that  of  “a  great  meeting  participated  in 
by  men  of  all  Christian  churches  within  the  scope 
of  the  call,  at  which  there  shall  be  consideration  not 
only  of  points  of  difference  and  agreement  among 
Christians,  but  of  the  values  of  the  various  ap- 
proximations of  belief  characteristic  of  the  several 
churches.”  It  was  further  declared  “that  while 
organic  unity  is  the  ideal  which  all  Christians  should 
have  in  their  thoughts  and  prayers,  yet  the  business 
of  the  Commissions  is  not  to  force  any  particular 
scheme  of  unity,  but  to  promote  the  holding  of  such 
a conference  as  is  above  described.”  A deputation 
appointed  at  this  preliminary  conference  to  confer 
with  the  non-Anglican  communions  in  England, 
Scotland,  and  Ireland  has  since  reported  a favorable 
hearing  on  the  part  of  31  groups  of  Christian  leaders 
in  the  countries  visited,  and  the  definite  promise  on 
the  part  of  each  that  the  appointment  of  Commis- 
sions on  the  World  Conference  would  be  recom- 
mended to  the  annual  meetings  of  the  denomina- 
tions represented. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


223 


This  proposed  World  Conference,  suggested  first, 
in  Westminster  Abbey,  by  the  great-hearted  mis- 
sionary leader.  Bishop  Brent  of  the  Philippines, 
adopted  enthusiastically  by  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  its  General  Convention  in  Cincinnati  in 
1910,  and  recommended  by  it  to  all  the  divisions  of 
Christendom,  has  already  received  so  large  a measure 
of  approval  on  the  part  of  other  Protestant  com- 
munions, and  is  being  projected  with  such  breadth 
of  view,  and  in  so  generous  a spirit,  that  all  who 
pray  for  the  peace  of  the  Church  will  watch,  with 
the  deepest  interest  and  concern,  the  progress 
of  the  negotiations  that  must  precede  its  convo- 
cation. Some  have  thought  the  literature  thus  far 
issued  by  the  Episcopal  Commission  defining  its 
character  and  purpose,  to  be  too  deeply  tinged  with 
sacerdotal  and  sacramentarian  conceptions  foreign  to 
the  thought  of  a major  proportion  of  American 
Protestantism,  to  make  it  likely  that  such  a con- 
ference could  accomplish  more  than  did  the  an- 
nouncement of  the  Chicago-Lambeth  Proposals  of 
1888.  In  any  event,  however,  a frank  discussion 
of  differences  and  agreements  upon  a common 
platform  will  do  much  to  clear  the  air,  and  to  reveal 
the  actual  elements  that  enter  into  the  problem  of 
unity  upon  a doctrinal  basis. 

The  plans  for  the  Conference  contemplate  the 
participation  of  the  Roman  Catholic  and  Greek 


224  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

Orthodox  Churches,  without  which  there  can  be 
no  re-establishment  of  catholicity.  This  introduces 
difficulties  that  appear  at  first  sight  to  be  exceed- 
ingly great.  Because  of  the  promulgation  of  the 
dogma  of  papal  infallibility,  the  possibility  of  re- 
union with  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  seems  more 
distant  than  at  any  previous  time  since  the  Reforma- 
tion. “The  reunion  of  the  scattered  branches  of 
Christendom,”  Cardinal  Gibbons  has  recently  said, 
“is  a consummation  devoutly  to  be  wished,  and  I 
would  gladly  sacrifice  the  remaining  years  of  my  life 
in  lending  a helping  hand  toward  this  blessed  result.” 
But  he  proceeds  to  say,  “The  first  essential  require- 
ment is  the  recognition  of  the  sovereign  pontiff, 
who,  as  the  successor  of  St.  Peter,  is  the  divinely 
appointed  head  of  Christendom. 

It  is  inconceivable  that  Protestantism  will  ever 
so  stultify  itself  as  to  give  even  serious  considera- 
tion to  such  a suggestion.  Yet  the  genius  and  his- 
tory of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  are  such  that  it 
seems  to  be  irrevocably  committed  to  the  dogma  of 
the  infallibility  of  the  pope,  and  by  its  solemn 
promulgation  to  have  shut  itself  out  from  the  pos- 
sibility of  change  or  compromise.  “To  feel  the 
necessity,  and  to  seek  the  ways,  of  gathering  to- 
gether the  scattered  members  of  Christ,”  Bishop 
Bonomelli  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Diocese  of  Cre- 


1 Sept.  28,  1913,  in  a newspaper  interview. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


225 


mona  has  said,  . . is  a surpassingly  noble  and 
beautiful  aim,  and  worthy  to  be  studied  and  trans- 
lated into  action  with  all  zeal;  and  it  is  very  con- 
soling to  see  how  our  Protestant  brothers  are  striv- 
ing for  this  end  with  evident  sincerity  and  thorough 
good-will.”  “I  cannot,  however,”  he  continues, 
“shut  my  eyes  to  the  very  grave  difficulty  of  the 
enterprise;  first  of  all,  the  situation  of  the  Roman 
Church,  which  cannot  recede  from  its  position,  or 
yield  upon  any  essential  point  of  its  doctrine,  with- 
out being  renegade  to  itself.  The  Roman  Church, 
with  its  definitions,  with  the  affirmations  repeated 
a thousand  times  of  its  divine  character,  and  with 
all  the  acts  of  its  govermnent,  has  cut  down  and  is 
cutting  down  every  bridge  behind  it.  It  can  well 
allow  itself  to  be  joined  by  the  dissident  Churches 
with  unconditional  submission;  but  it  cannot  turn 
back,  review  its  own  decisions,  modify  its  dogmas, 
change  its  hierarchy,  lessen  its  authority.  . . . 
And  in  this,  I believe,  consists  the  greatest  obstacle 
to  that  unity,  the  need  of  which  is  so  deeply  felt.”^ 
But  the  spirit  of  the  times  is  profoundly  affecting 
this,  as  well  as  all  other  churches,  especially  in 
America.  The  powerful  and  wide-spread  movement 
within  the  Roman  Church  known  as  modernism, 
which,  in  some  of  its  phases,  appears  to  be  a reasser- 
tion of  the  primitive  gospel  of  the  apostles,  and  an 

* The  Constructive  Quarterly,  Sept.,  1913,  p.  445  ff. 

15 


226  THE  UNION  OP  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

approach  to  the  evangelical  principles  held  by- 
Protestantism,  is  a sign  of  promise  of  a better 
understanding  between  these  two  great  divisions  of 
the  Church,  even  though  the  outcome  of  that 
movement  is  still  in  doubt.  If  some  day  there  should 
sit  upon  St.  Peter’s  throne  a modernist  pope,  sus- 
ceptible to  the  thousand  influences  that  are  empha- 
sizing the  simple  forms  of  experience  and  belief 
which  characterized  the  life  of  the  earliest  disciples 
and  that  are  drawing  Protestants  into  a new  unity 
upon  the  basis  of  a New  Testament  Christianity,  the 
hope  of  a closer  approach  of  Catholic  to  Protestant 
would  receive  an  impetus  quite  beyond  our  present 
ability  to  measure. 

There  is  no  apparent  indication  of  the  drawing 
together  of  the  Roman  Catholic  and  Greek  Orthodox 
Churches.  “It  might  seem,”  writes  Archbishop 
Platon  of  the  Greek  Church,  “that  no  Church  is 
closer  to  the  Orthodox  than  is  the  Roman  Catholic. 
Chief  among  their  resemblances,  the  two  have  the 
same  number  of  sacraments;  yet  the  distance  be- 
tween them  is  so  great  as  to  terrify  us;  it  is  almost 
immeasurable.”^  So  far  as  the  relation  between  the 
Greek  Orthodox  and  Protestant  communions  other 
than  the  Anglican  is  concerned,  it  is  sufficient  to 
say  that  the  grounds  upon  which  Archbishop  Platon 
thinks  some  approach  of  Anglicans  and  Greek  Ortho- 


' The  Constructive  Quarterly,  September,  1913,  p.  434  fif. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY  227 

dox  Christians  to  one  another  may  be  possible, 
namely,  the  rejection  on  the  part  of  the  Anglicans 
of  the  dogmatic  authority  of  the  Thirty-nine  Arti- 
cles of  the  Church  of  England,  which  deny  the 
sacramentarian  character  of  holy  orders,  would 
probably  raise  an  issue  upon  which  most  non- 
Anglican  bodies  would  find  it  difficult  to  unite  with 
either  Anglicans  or  Greeks.  Many  of  the  obstacles 
that  stand  in  the  way  of  Church  reunion  must  be 
left  to  time  and  the  Spirit  of  God  to  remove,  in 
the  confidence  that  what  to  man  may  seem  impos- 
sible, is  possible  to  God. 

The  ultimate  union  of  Protestantism  with  the 
Roman  and  Orthodox  Churches  must  in  any  case 
be  preceded  by  the  reunion  of  Protestantism  itself. 
To  that  practicable  and  hopeful  task  the  advocates 
of  Christian  unity  within  the  Protestant  churches 
will  do  well  for  the  present  to  confine  themselves. 
And  the  first  step  in  that  direction  must  surely  be 
the  combination  of  the  various  divisions  of  particular 
denominations.  Unity  is  probably  to  come  by 
piecemeal.  Of  the  12  bodies  of  Presbyterians,  18  of 
Methodists,  and  13  of  Baptists,  the  larger  branches 
are  kept  apart  by  the  purely  geographical  divisions 
of  North  and  South.  There  is  no  latitude  nor 
longitude  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  when  these 
artificial  divisions  are  swept  away  by  the  rising  tide 
of  Christian  love,  the  way  will  be  cleared  for  the 


228  THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 

union  of  the  manifold  varieties  of  varieties  of  Chris- 
tians that  are  separated  now  by  distinctions  often 
so  minute  as  to  be  indiscernible.  When  the  Direc- 
tor of  the  Census  can  distinguish  between  two 
Christian  bodies  only  by  the  difference  in  the  color 
of  the  covers  of  their  respective  annual  reports/ 
it  would  certainly  seem  that  unity  might  be  possible 
without  loss  to  either.  The  combinations  of  de- 
nominational fractions  into  integers  are  taking  place 
with  increasing  frequency.  Already  Baptists  and 
Free  Baptists  have  consummated  a practical  union 
in  their  missionary  agencies,  and  a complete  union 
in  many  of  the  states.  The  Old  School  and  the  New 
School  Presbyterians,  who  divided  in  1837  on  doc- 
trinal grounds,  came  together  again  in  1869  on  a 
basis  of  orthodoxy  and  liberty,  while  in  1875  four 
divisions  of  Presbyterians  in  Canada  came  together 
in  a single  organization,  and  the  following  year  saw 
the  combination  of  the  Presbyterian  and  the  United 
Presbyterian  Churches  of  England. 

More  recently,  in  1900,  the  United  Free  Church 
of  Scotland  was  formed  to  include  the  Free  and  the 
United  Presbyterian  Churches  of  that  country,  and 
almost  simultaneously  six  Presbyterian  churches  in 
Australia  and  two  in  New  Zealand  came  harmo- 
niously together.  The  Northern  and  Southern  divi- 
sions of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  the  Reformed 


* Carroll,  The  Religious  Forces  of  the  United  States,  p.  xix. 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


229 


Church,  and  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  are 
engaged  in  negotiations  that  appear  to  promise  a 
closer  union  of  Presbyterians  within  the  United 
States  in  the  near  future.  Nor  are  the  Methodists 
behind  in  this  fraternal  movement.  The  Method- 
ists in  Canada,  until  1874  divided  into  five  indepen- 
dent bodies,  united  in  a single  inclusive  church  in 
1883,  and  a similar  union  has  taken  place  in  Australia. 
At  the  present  moment,  the  two  branches  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  North  and  South,  and 
the  Methodist  Protestant  Church  are  considering 
the  formation  of  a united  Methodism.  Already 
Commissions  from  the  United  Brethren  and  the 
Methodist  Protestant  Church  have  agreed  to  unite, 
subject  to  the  ratification  of  their  General  Con- 
ferences. Such  tendencies  in  these  three  typical  de- 
nominations are  characteristic  of  the  spirit  of  the  new 
era  within  other  Protestant  bodies.  The  organic 
union  of  the  Lutheran  and  the  German  Reformed 
Churches  in  Prussia,  long  ago  consummated  under 
a single  government  and  administration,  with  liberty 
in  the  use  of  creeds  and  catechisms,  was  no  more 
easily  accomplished  than  might  be  a similar  union 
among  the  related  branches  of  these  churches  in 
America.  The  desire  for  such  formal  union  is 
spreading  among  all  the  Lutheran  bodies  in  this 
country,  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  Missouri 
Synod.  The  plans  for  the  union  of  the  Old  Nor- 


230 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


wegian  Synod,  the  United  Norwegian  Lutherans, 
and  the  Hauge  Synod  are  already  practically  com- 
plete. Many  Lutherans  cherish  the  hope  that  by 
1917,  when  the  four  hundredth  anniversary  of  the 
beginning  of  the  Reformation  is  to  be  celebrated,  it 
will  be  possible  to  adopt  some  plan  of  union  that 
shall  be  acceptable  to  all  the  Lutheran  bodies  in 
America. 

Following  such  unification  of  divisions  of  single 
denominations,  we  may  hope  for  the  combination  of 
such  separate  communions  as  may  most  effectively 
and  easily  unite  in  administration  and  service.  Al- 
ready the  project  of  the  union  of  the  Presbyterian, 
Methodist,  and  Congregational  churches  in  Canada' 
is  hopefully  advancing  toward  completion,  under  the 
name  of  “The  United  Church  of  Canada,”  and  in 
its  magnitude  and  meaning  it  well  deserves  to  be 
characterized  as  “an  extraordinary  movement, 
in  some  respects  not  paralleled  for  several  cen- 
turies.” Twenty  years  ago  the  Protestant  Epis- 
copal Church  and  the  Presbyterian  Church,  North, 
entered  into  negotiations  looking  toward  union, 
and  though  the  plan  of  union  failed  at  that  time, 
it  was  for  causes  that  would  hardly  prevail  to-day 
in  either  communion.  From  South  Africa  we  hear 
of  attempts  of  Baptists,  Congregationalists,  Method- 
ists, and  Presbyterians  to  form  a closer  union;  and 
from  Australia,  of  similar  attempts  on  the  part  of 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


231 


Presbyterians,  Methodists,  Congregationalists,  and 
Episcopalians. 

In  many  parts  of  the  world  fresh  indications  of  the 
prevalence  of  the  spirit  that  is  healing  the  divisions 
of  Christendom  and  drawing  the  hearts  of  Christians 
together  are  manifest,  and  so  rapid  is  the  progress  of 
the  movement  that  it  is  impossible  adequately  to 
record  it.  Denominations  diverse  in  their  methods 
of  government,  and  that  have  been  thought  to  be 
as  wide  asunder  as  the  poles  in  their  conceptions, 
are  anxiously  seeking  a platform  upon  which  they 
can  unite  hearts  and  hands  in  their  common  tasks. 
At  a recent  meeting  of  the  Free  Church  Council  of 
Great  Britain,  which  includes  all  the  great  dis- 
senting bodies,  an  enthusiastic  reception  was  given 
to  the  proposal  of  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Shakespeare,  that 
all  the  non-conformist  churches  of  the  country 
should  come  together  under  the  title,  “The  United 
Free  Church  of  Great  Britain.”  On  the  foreign 
mission  field,  as  we  have  seen,  the  cause  of  Chris- 
tian unity  thrives  apace,  and  the  anxiety  of  its 
best  friends  is  lest  its  progress  be  more  rapid  than 
wise.  “The  Christian  Church  in  China”  bids  fair 
to  unify,  before  very  long,  all  the  stronger  Protes- 
tant forces  of  the  republic,  and  the  spirit  of  China 
is  reflected  in  all  Oriental  missionary  situations.  We 
are  in  the  midst  to-day  of  a mighty  movement,  as 
significant  as  the  Reformation,  that  is  sweeping 


232 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


with  irresistible  power  over  the  entire  world,  and 
that  is  shortly  to  change  the  face  of  Christendom. 
Who  can  doubt  that  it  is  of  God? 

The  churches  in  America  are  learning  and  borrow- 
ing from  each  other,  and  approximating  to  one 
another  in  many  respects.  The  tendency  upon  the 
foreign  mission  field  to-day  is  toward  as  large  a 
measure  as  possible  of  independence  and  self-govern- 
ment for  the  local  church.  In  America,  even  in  de- 
nominations episcopally  governed,  there  is  a larger 
degree  of  independence  of  action  upon  the  part  of 
the  local  congregation  than  would  have  been  possible 
a quarter  of  a century  ago;  while,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  is  a decided  tendency  toward  co-ordination 
and  centralization  among  denominations  of  the 
congregational  and  independent  order.  The  ob- 
servance of  the  church  year  is  coming  into  increas- 
ing favor  among  communions  that  once  wholly 
ignored  it,  and  liturgical  embellishments  of  the 
service  are  finding  their  way  into  non-liturgical 
churches.  Many  indications  point  toward  the  de- 
velopment of  a tjqie  of  church  to  which  no  de- 
nomination at  present  wholly  conforms,  but  to 
which  every  denomination  is  contributing  some- 
thing distincth^ely  its  own. 

The  establishment  of  the  Constructive  Quarterly, 
in  1913,  a magazine  of  the  highest  order,  whose 
avowed  purpose  it  is  to  create  “a  better  understand- 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


233 


ing  between  the  isolated  communions  of  Christen- 
dom,” is  at  once  a sign  of  the  spirit  of  the  times,  and 
likely  to  become  a powerful  influence  in  accelera- 
ting the  spread  of  that  spirit.  “It  is  not  neutral 
territory  that  is  sought,”  declares  the  publisher, 
“where  courtesy  and  diplomacy  would  naturally 
tend  to  avoid  issues  and  to  round  off  the  sharp  edges 
of  truth  and  conviction,  but  rather  common  ground 
where  loyalty  to  Christ  and  to  convictions  about 
him  and  his  Church  will  be  secure  from  the  tendency 
to  mere  compromise  or  to  superficial  and  artificial 
comprehension.  The  purpose  is  to  create  an  atmos- 
phere of  mutual  confidence  and  to  induce  a better 
understanding  and  a truer  sense  of  fellowship.” 

If  this  movement  is  of  God,  nothing  can  check  it, 
and  he  who  would  serve  his  generation  must  lend 
his  hand  to  further  it.  “The  reunion  of  Christen- 
dom,” declared  Prof.  Goldwin  Smith,  “is  likely  at 
last  to  become  a practical  aim.  Probably  it  would 
be  a greater  service  to  humanity,  on  philosophical  as 
well  as  religious  grounds,  to  contribute  the  smallest 
unit  toward  this  consummation,  than  to  construct 
the  most  perfect  demonstration  of  the  free  per- 
sonality of  man.  As  things  are,  rationalism  and 
fatalistic  reveries  may  be  laboriously  confuted,  but 
amidst  the  energies  and  aspirations  of  a regenerated 
Christendom  they  would  spontaneously  disappear.”^ 


^ Lectures  on  the  Study  of  History^  p.  181. 


234 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Questions  as  to  procedure  and  method  are  still  in 
solution;  but  this  great  guiding  principle,  at  least, 
is  emerging  from  the  aspiration,  and  prayer,  and  free 
discussion  which  are  gathering  about  the  great 
theme,  that  unity  will  manifest  itself  in  proportion 
as  the  hearts  of  Christian  people  are  prepared  for  it, 
and  as  the  tide  of  devotion  to  the  Head  of  the  Church, 
and  to  the  cause  of  his  Kingdom  rises  to  the  flood. 

“I  stood  beside  the  sea  one  day, 

The  tide  was  low; 

With  quiet  flow 

It  scarcely  lapped  the  ocean’s  rim, 

Whose  waving  lines,  now  clear,  now  dim. 

Revealed  the  shelving,  sandy  beach. 

Where  oft  the  waves 
To  watery  graves 
In  quick  succession  swiftly  bore 
Each  other  as  they  climbed  the  shore. 

The  little  hollows  in  the  sand. 

Like  silvery  nests 
Where  sunshine  rests, 

Just  for  the  time  appeared  to  me 
As  lasting  as  the  shore  to  be; 

But  later,  when  the  tide  had  turned, 

I found  no  trace 
In  any  place 

Of  all  the  basins,  which  had  seemed 
So  lasting  as  they  gleamed 
Beneath  the  glowing  summer  sun. 

Why  had  they  fled 
Like  bright  hopes  dead? 


ORGANIC  CHURCH  UNITY 


235 


Because  the  ocean  in  its  sweep 
Had  gathered  all  in  one  great  deep. 
Here  in  the  pools  upon  the  sand 
I seem  to  find 
Within  my  mind 

A type  of  churches,  sects  and  creeds, 
Established  for  the  great  world’s  needs; 
Just  for  a while  they  will  remain. 

Each  with  its  plan 
For  blessing  man. 

Till  God’s  great  love,  like  ocean-tide. 

In  one  shall  all  divisions  hide. 

'Then,  folded  on  our  Father’s  breast. 
Like  tired  child 
That  wept  and  smiled. 

At  last,  we  all  shall  come  to  see 
One  Church,  in  its  divinity.”^ 


* Margaret  May,  “Pools  in  the  Sand.' 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


True  basis  of  organic  unity. — Other  foundations  discussed; 
The  Anglican  ideal;  Proposals  presented  by  the  General 
Convention  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church.— The  two 
theories  of  the  Christian  ministry,  the  sacerdotal  and  the 
Protestant,  stated. — Difference  of  opinion  among  Anglican 
scholars  concerning  apostolic  succession. — Unity  not  to  be 
found  in  agreement  concerning  validity  of  ministerial  orders. 
— Lord’s  Supper  and  baptism  cause  of  differences. — Uni- 
formity in  practice  and  doctrine  concerning  the  ordinances 
not  essential  to  organic  unity. — Unity  not  to  be  secured  by 
absorption. — Ancient  creeds  or  decrees  of  Councils  do  not 
offer  a basis  for  organic  unity. — Unity  in  the  apostolic  Church 
among  men  of  different  temperaments  and  convictions. — 
Love  for  Christ  and  for  one  another  secret  of  past  and  future 
organic  unity. 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 

The  only  basis  upon  which  the  organic  unity  of 
all  denominations  in  a single  church  can  ever  be 
secured  and  maintained  is  that  upon  which  the 
unity  of  the  first  disciples  rested, — loyalty  to  God  in 
Christ  and  a personal  experience  of  his  presence  and 
power  within  the  individual  soul.  Back  to  the  first 
century  we  must  go,  to  the  living  springs  at  which 
the  earliest  Christians  drank,  if  we  are  to  find  that 
source  of  fellowship  in  service  and  worship  of  which 
the  Lord  of  the  Church  was  thinking  when  he 
prayed  “that  they  may  all  be  one;  even  as  thou. 
Father,  art  in  me,  and  I in  thee,  that  they  also  may 
be  in  us.” 

Other  foundations  have  been  and  are  still  proposed 
as  those  upon  which  the  unification  of  Christendom 
should  be  attempted,  particularly  identity  of  church 
polity,  and  of  creed;  but  in  no  one  of  them  is  there 
any  promise  of  success.  The  tenacity  with  which 
the  divided  churches  cling  to  conscientious  convic- 
tions as  to  doctrine,  and  to  cherished  modes  of  wor- 
ship or  forms  of  polity  that  they  believe  to  be 
authoritative,  is  neither  to  be  ignored  nor  depre- 
cated. The  lessening  of  the  force  of  religious  con- 


239 


240 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


viction  would  be  too  high  a price  to  pay  for  unity, 
greatly  as  that  is  to  be  desired,  since  fidelity  to  con- 
science is  to  be  preferred  above  it.  The  only  unity 
for  which  the  Church  can  pray  is  one  that  leaves 
these  intact  and  free  to  develop  in  all  their  diversity; 
for  even  the  divisions  within  the  ranks  of  the  Church 
are  not  so  threatening  as  would  be  the  deadening 
effects  of  uniformity.  It  is  not  necessary,  however, 
that  forms  of  polity  shall  be  identical  before  the 
Church  can  be  united ; or  that  rituals,  helpful  to  the 
spirit  of  worship  of  any  body  of  Christians,  shall  be 
discarded;  or  that  doctrines  conscientiously  held 
shall  be  abandoned.  The  level  of  attachment  must 
be  deeper  than  any  one  of  these,  and  sought  in  the 
possession  of  a common  spiritual  experience  which  is 
essential,  as  these  are  not.  “In  essentials  unity, 
in  non-essentials  liberty,  and  in  all  things  charity” 
is  the  only  possible  program  by  which  the  unifica- 
tion of  Christendom  can  be  secured. 

The  divided  churches  can  never  be  frozen  together: 
they  must  be  welded  into  one  if  the  union  is  to  be 
either  strong  or  permanent.  That  neither  polity 
nor  doctrine  will  suffice  for  a basis  of  the  reunion 
that  Christendom  is  seeking  is  evident  from  the 
history  of  the  attempts  to  secure  it  upon  such 
foundations.  Neither  the  Roman  ideal  of  formal 
unity  under  the  absolute  authority  of  the  pope  and 
the  Roman  curia,  nor  what  may  be  called  the  Greek 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


241 


ideal,  based  upon  a rigid  orthodoxy,  goes  deep 
enough  to  serve  as  the  foundation  of  a unity  that 
shall  be  spiritual  and  vital.  The  Anglican  ideal 
combines  both  of  these  elements,  being  that  of 
organic  and  visible  unity  on  a fourfold  basis:  the 
Scriptures,  the  two  ancient  creeds,  the  two  great 
sacraments,  and  the  historic  episcopate;  but  it  is 
questionable  whether  it  contains  any  larger  promise 
of  success  than  those  which  have  preceded  it. 

This  last  proposal,  the  most  famous  ever  pro- 
pounded for  the  unity  of  the  Church,  attracted  at 
its  appearance  the  attention  of  the  entire  Christian 
world.  It  has  been  the  rare  privilege  and  honor  of 
one  of  the  smallest  Protestant  bodies  in  America 
to  be  the  first  to  make  definite  overtures  to  the  di- 
vided Christian  forces,  and  even  to  be  followed  by 
the  mother  Church  of  England.  These  propositions, 
first  issued  in  1886,  by  the  General  Convention  of 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  Chicago,  and, 
in  1888,  reissued,  with  minor  changes,  by  the  Con- 
ference of  Bishops  of  the  Anglican  Communion,  held 
in  Lambeth  Palace,  read  as  follows: 

That,  in  the  opinion  of  this  Conference,  the  following 
Articles  supply  a basis  on  which  approach  may  be  by  God’s 
blessing  made  toward  Home  Reunion; 

(a)  The  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments, 
as  “containing  all  things  necessary  to  salvation,”  and  as 
being  the  rule  and  ultimate  standard  of  Faith. 

16 


242 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


(b)  The  Apostles’  Creed,  as  the  baptismal  symbol;  and 
the  Nicene  Creed,  as  the  sufficient  statement  of  the  Christian 
Faith. 

(c)  The  two  Sacraments  ordained  by  Christ  himself, — 
Baptism  and  the  Supper  of  the  Lord, — administered  with 
unfailing  use  of  Christ’s  words  of  institution,  and  of  the 
elements  ordained  by  him. 

(d)  The  Historic  Episcopate,  locally  adapted  in  the  meth- 
ods of  its  administration  to  the  varying  needs  of  the  nations 
and  peoples  called  of  God  into  the  unity  of  his  Church. 

These  proposals,  which  have  called  forth  volumes 
of  comment  and  criticism,  have  performed  a most 
valuable  service  in  bringing  forcibly  to  the  atten- 
tion of  the  Christian  world  the  question  of  unity 
and  the  elements  that  are  involved  in  it.  The  first 
three  propositions  have  received  wide  acceptance 
on  the  part  of  representatives  of  evangelical  de- 
nominations; the  center  about  which  controversy 
and  dissent  has  gathered  being  the  fourth,  which 
deals  with  the  historic  episcopate.  If  this  proposi- 
tion is  concerned  merely  with  a form  of  church 
polity,  the  strength  and  fervor  of  the  dissent  and 
opposition  which  it  has  aroused  would  seem  to  be 
disproportionate  to  its  importance.  The  episco- 
pate presented  as  an  historic  institution  apart  from 
any  theory  of  its  origin  and  claims, — that  is  to  say, 
a mere  governmental  as  distinguished  from  a sacer- 
dotal episcopacy,-— would  probably  not  be  repugnant 
to  other  Protestants.  If  the  Church  were  forced 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


243 


to  choose  between  the  two,  it  would  doubtless  prefer 
hierarchy  to  anarchy.  Episcopacy  is  already  the 
de  facto  government  of  three-fourths,  if  not  of  four- 
fifths,  of  Christendom.  Of  the  three  prevalent  forms 
of  polity,  congregational,  presbyterial,  and  episcopal, 
however,  scholars  appear  to  agree  that  all  co-existed, 
in  germ  at  least,  in  the  undivided  Church  of  apostolic 
times.  No  one  of  them  seems  to  have  so  far  es- 
tablished its  pre-eminent  efficiency  as  to  have 
proved  itself  to  be  fittest  of  all  to  survive  and  to 
control  the  Church  of  the  future.  Questions  of 
polity,  therefore,  should  not  be  permitted  perma- 
nently to  divide  the  Church. 

Much  cannot,  however,  be  expected  for  the  cause 
of  unity  from  agreement  in  polity  alone.  The 
several  episcopally  governed  denominations,  or 
congregationally  governed  denominations,  are  no 
nearer  to  each  other  than  are  episcopal  to  congre- 
gational bodies.  Polities  will  not  serve  as  a ground 
of  unity,  though  they  may,  if  associated  with  theo- 
ries of  their  exclusive  validity,  prove  to  be  a ground 
of  division. 

It  is  because  of  the  persistent  suspicion  that  “the 
historic  episcopate”  as  here  suggested  is  associated 
with  such  a theory  that  the  Lambeth  Proposals  have 
not  received  a wider  acceptance  on  the  part  of  non- 
Anglican  churches.  It  is  not  to  the  historic  episco- 
pate, but  to  the  dogma  of  an  “apostolic  succession” 


244 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


usually  attached  to  it,  which  makes  the  Church  de- 
pendent upon  a valid  administration  of  the  sacra- 
ments, and  this  in  turn  dependent  upon  a sacerdotal 
theory  of  the  ministry,  that  the  great  mass  of 
Protestantism  objects.  There  are  two  theories  of 
the  Christian  ministry  that  are  diametrically  opposed 
to  one  another.  One  is  based  upon  the  conception 
that  “the  Validity  of  Orders  depends  upon  the  Apos- 
tolic Commission  perpetuated  in  unbroken  succes- 
sion of  the  ministry  in  the  Christian  Church.”^ 
Those  who  hold  it  declare  “that  our  Lord  com- 
missioned the  Twelve  with  his  authority  over  his 
Kingdom  or  Church,  and  that  this  authority  was  to 
be  exercised  in  the  use  of  the  functions  of  prophecy, 
priesthood,  and  royalty,  reflecting  his  own  authority 
in  these  three  spheres.  They  had  (1)  prophetic 
authority  to  preach  and  to  teach;  (2)  priestly 
authority  to  celebrate  the  sacraments  of  baptism 
and  of  the  Lord’s  Supper  and  conduct  the  worship 
of  the  Church;  (3)  royal  authority  to  organize  the 
Church,  and  to  govern  and  discipline  the  disciples 
whom  they  received  into  the  Church  by  baptism  and 
whom  they  retained  in  the  fellowship  of  the  Holy 
Communion.  In  the  first  of  these  commissions  the 
prophetic  authority  is  most  prominent,  in  the  second 
the  power  of  the  keys,  in  the  third  the  priestly  or 
sacramental  function.  But  they  all  are  involved  in 

' Prof.  C.  A.  Briggs,  Church  Unity,  p.  103. 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


245 


the  true  functions  and  full  commission  of  the  aposto- 
late  and  their  successors  in  the  Christian  ministry. 
. . . Jesus  Christ  . . . committed  his  authority 
while  absent  from  this  earth  to  a ministering  body 
which  should  exercise  all  these  functions  on  his  be- 
half and  for  the  benefit  of  the  entire  Kingdom.” 

Quite  irreconcilable  with  such  a theory  is  that 
usually  held  by  evangelical  Protestant  churches, 
namely,  that  all  spiritual  authority  is  resident  in 
personality,  and  is  dependent  upon  spiritual  quali- 
fications, and,  by  its  very  nature,  cannot  be  con- 
veyed from  those  who  have  it  to  those  who  have  it 
not.  Spiritual  grace,  according  to  this  conception, 
cannot  be  transferred  like  a package  over  a counter; 
nor  transmitted  cutaneously,  as  it  were,  or  by  physi- 
cal contact,  as  electricity  from  a Leyden  jar.  He 
who  would  possess  and  exercise  it  must  gain  it  di- 
rectly at  its  source,  from  the  great  Head  of  the 
Church.  All  that  the  Church  can  do  is  to  recognize 
these  qualifications  where  they  exist,  and  set  its  seal 
upon  them.  No  compromise  is  possible  between 
the  two  theories  of  the  Christian  ministry,  the  sacer- 
dotal or  priestly,  and  the  republican  or  Protestant: 
they  represent  two  mutually  contradictory  concep- 
tions of  religion.  To  many  the  idea  of  the  transmis- 
sion of  authority  in  religion  within  a priestly  hier- 
archy seems  to  belong  with  the  monarchical  scheme 
of  government,  the  theory  of  the  divine  right  of 


246 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


kings,  and  the  succession  of  kings  within  a single 
dynasty,  which  were  the  prevailing  notions  in  the 
formative  years  of  the  Church,  and  which  so  pro- 
foundly influenced  its  thought  and  development; 
but  it  appears  to  such  to  be  out  of  place  in  an 
era  of  democracy,  when  all  men  are  proclaimed  to 
be  equal  in  political  rights  and  in  the  sight  of  God, 
and  under  a republican  form  of  government  where 
all  authority  is  delegated  by  the  people  to  those 
believed  to  be  morally  and  spiritually  competent 
to  wield  it.  In  a republic  the  son  no  longer  suc- 
ceeds his  father  in  places  of  authority,  nor  does  the 
incumbent  nominate  or  appoint  his  successor  in 
political  offlce.  The  atmosphere  generated  by  re- 
publican institutions  is  inhospitable  to  the  dogma  of 
an  apostolic  succession : it  finds  no  analogies  in  other 
fields,  and  speaks  in  a language  which  experience  can 
no  longer  interpret. 

The  whole  contention,  moreover,  seems  to  a large 
section  of  Protestantism  to  be  quite  foreign  to  the 
real  purpose  of  the  Church.  The  Apostle  Paul  de- 
clares that  he  might  have  prided  himself  upon 
ecclesiastical  regularity.  He  tells  us  that  he  was 
circumcised  the  eighth  day,  a Hebrew  of  the  He- 
brews, as  touching  the  law,  a Pharisee, — but  that  he 
counted  all  this  to  be  loss  for  Christ.  Such  claims 
had  their  value,  and  such  qualifications  their  potency, 
under  the  old  r^ime  of  the  law;  but  under  grace 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UISHTY  247 

they  were  worthless.  Christianity,  as  Canon  Fre- 
mantle of  the  Anglican  Church  has  forcibly  pointed 
\/  , out,^  is,  according  to  the  New  Testament,  primarily 
a life,  and  only  secondarily  a system  of  doctrine, 
\ public  worship,  and  clerical  government.  “Why, 
then,”  he  asks,  “is  so  disproportionate  an  amount 
of  Christian  effort  spent  on  these  last?  And  why 
are  disputes  about  them  allowed  to  hinder  us  from 
any  serious  and  united  movement  for  making  the 
common  life  really  Christian?”  It  must  be  ac- 
knowledged that  union  with  Christ  constitutes  a 
Christian,  and  that  all  who  are  accepted  of  Christ 
are  members  of  his  Church,  in  whatever  communion 
they  may  be  found,  and  it  would  not  appear  that 
such  membership  can  be  made  to  depend  upon 
grace  conferred  through  any  human  channels 
whatsoever. 

As  to  questions  of  historic  fact  upon  which  the 
doctrine  of  an  apostolic  succession  depends,  there 
j j appear  to  be  grave  differences  of  opinion  among 
scholars  of  the  Anglican  communion,  and  it  is  little 
1 wonder  that  the  remainder  of  American  Protestant- 
\ ism  is  unwilling  to  accept  the  doctrine  as  an  essen- 
tial part  of  the  program  of  Christian  unity  until 
Bishops  Gore  and  Hall  and  Professor  Moberly,  who 
profess  it,  can  be  reconciled  with  Bishops  Lightfoot 
and  Brown,  and  Professor  Hort,  who  reject  it.  For 


1 The  World  as  the  Subject  of  Redemption^  p.  x. 


248 


THE  UNION  OF  CHEISTIAN  FORCES 


many  Protestant  bodies  the  ground  is  cut  below  all 
such  controversies  by  their  conviction  that  even  if 
the  facts  in  question  were  substantiated,  and  the 
theory  justified,  no  spiritual  gain  would  accrue  to 
the  Church,  or  any  jure  divino  authority  be  estab- 
lished. They  ask  only  for  the  marks  of  fidelity  and 
efficiency  in  Christian  service,  and  count  these  to  be 
adequate  credentials  for  the  exercise  of  a Christian 
ministry. 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  prevalent  spirit  of 
Protestantism  as  a whole  offers  no  hope  that  a basis 

. of  agreement  and  unity  will  ever  be  found  in  a com- 
mon doctrine  as  to  what  constitutes  a valid  order  of 
the  ministry  of  the  Church.  The  Roman  Catholic 
Church  admits  the  validity  of  the  orders  of  the  Greek 
Orthodox  Church,  yet  no  two  churches  are  farther 
apart  in  their  sympathies.  Both  the  Roman  and  the 
Greek  Churches,  on  the  other  hand,  deny  the  valid- 
ity of  the  orders  of  the  Anglican  and  Protestant 
Episcopal  Churches,  who,  in  turn,  deny  the  valid- 
ity of  the  orders  of  all  dissenting  churches,  while 
within  the  Anglican  and  Protestant  Episcopal 
Churches  are  those  who  claim  validity  for  their 
own  orders  on  the  ground  of  apostolic  succession, 
those  who  doubt  or  deny  it,  and  those  who  do  not 
regard  apostolic  succession  as  essential  to  such 
validity.  Evidently  there  is  no  way  out  of  our  dis- 
unity in  this  direction.  Moreover,  it  does  not  seem 

/ 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


249 


likely  that  unity  will  ever  be  achieved  by  any 
method  which,  by  requiring  re-ordination,  or  other- 
wise, discredits  the  credentials  of  any  church  or 
ministry  that  Christ  has  honored  with  his  presence 
and  blessing,  and  denies  its  right  to  labor  in  the 
Lord’s  vineyard.  Opinions  as  to  the  validity  of 
orders  are  among  the  non-essentials  with  regard  to 
which  the  widest  liberty  must  be  allowed.  In  the 
coming  Catholicism  there  must  be  made  room  for 
the  hospitable  reception  of  the  most  diverse  con- 
ceptions as  to  ecclesiastical  regularity. 

It  is  one  of  the  sad  effects  of  the  divided  state  of 
the  Church  that  Christian  institutions  that  were 
originally  meant  to  manifest  the  unity  of  the  Church 
often  serve  to  accentuate  and  widen  the  gulfs  that 
separate  one  Christian  body  from  another.  This 
is  true  of  the  sacraments,  which,  variously  con- 
ceived and  administered,  have  become  the  occasion 
of  division.  It  is  at  the  Supper  of  the  Lord,  sig- 
nificantly called  the  “holy  communion,”  where 
Christians  partake  of  the  one  body  broken  for  all, 
that  they  divide  to  right  and  left.  There  is  a pathetic 
note  in  the  statement  adopted  by  the  Lahore  Confer- 
ence of  workers  of  all  denominations  in  India,  called 
by  the  Edinburgh  Continuation  Committee,  in 
which  this  gathering  of  Christian  men  and  women, 
eager  for  a larger  manifestation  of  the  spirit  of 
unity,  after  declaring  that  “it  has  to  be  recognized. 


250 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


with  whatever  regret,  that  we  belong  to  various 
branches  of  the  Church  of  Christ  which  on  certain 
questions  of  order  and  polity  hold  divergent  views,” 
proceeds  to  resolve  that  “it  is,  for  the  present,  ad- 
visable for  us  to  refrain  from  considering  that  the 
absence  of  the  observance  of  the  Sacrament  of  the 
Holy  Communion  at  interdenominational  gatherings 
implies  a lack  of  the  spirit  of  unity.”  Thus,  too, 
Christians,  though  “in  one  Spirit  all  baptized  into 
one  body,”  are  divided  by  questions  as  to  the  mode 
and  subjects  of  the  ordinance  of  baptism.  “On 
the  question  of  requirements  for  baptism,”  declared 
the  Lahore  Conference,  “we  recommend  that,  owing 
to  the  wide  diversity  of  practice  in  our  Missionary 
Societies,  a serious  attempt  be  made  to  have  greater 
uniformity  of  conditions  required  of  candidates  for 
baptism.”  This  is  a consummation  devoutly  to  be 
wished  also  in  the  home  land. 

Agreement  in  doctrine  and  practice  with  respect 
to  the  sacraments  is,  nevertheless,  not  sufiicient  to 
I effect  the  unity  of  the  Church,  nor  ought  differences 
of  conception  here  to  be  sufficient  to  prevent  it. 
The  Roman  Catholic  and  Greek  Churches  agree  on 
such  points  also,  but  this  does  not  bridge  the  chasm 
that  separates  them.  Baptists  and  the  Disciples  of 
Christ  are  in  accord  in  the  practice  of  immersion, 
but  it  has  not  drawn  them  together  a whit.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  possible  for  those  holding  widely 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


251 


divergent  views  as  to  the  meaning,  mode,  and 
efficacy  of  the  sacraments,  to  unite  in  worship  and 
service  and  Christian  fellowship,  so  long  as  liberty 
is  accorded  to  all.  How  shall  we  treat  those  who 
differ  from  ourselves  in  their  interpretations  of  the 
ordinances?  Just  as  God  treats  them.  Does  he 
discriminate  in  favor  of  immersionists,  or  bless  those 
who  hold  one  conception  of  the  Lord’s  Supper  above 
those  who  hold  another?  The  confines  of  his  King- 
dom are  broad  enough  to  include  them  all. 

Much  the  same  may  be  said  of  theological  formula. 
Creeds  and  confessions  of  faith,  meant  to  draw 
Christians  together,  have  driven  them  apart. 
Church  unity  never  has  existed,  and  never  can  be 
secured  upon  a basis  of  theology;  but  neither  should 
controversies  in  this  regard  be  permitted  to  keep 
Christian  hands  and  hearts  apart.  The  differences 
between  the  manifold  creeds  of  Christendom  are  so 
extreme  that  it  would  be  impossible  for  all  Chris- 
tians to  unite  in  any  formal  statement  of  faith  ex- 
cept in  a few  general  and  soulless  propositions  of 
natural  theology.  But  where  theology  divides, 
religion,  the  life  which  theology  often  vainly  seeks 
to  describe,  unites.  Men  may  enjoy  experiences 
essentially  the  same  while  differing  widely  in  their 
interpretations  of  them.  The  centrifugal  forces 
that  drive  the  disciples  of  Jesus  apart  are  of  the 
head:  the  centripetal  forces  that  draw  them  to- 


252 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


gether  and  toward  the  central  Christ  issue  from  the 
heart.  We  may  expect  a larger  degree  of  agree- 
ment in  doctrine  after  the  churches  have  come  to- 
gether to  pray  and  praise  and  serve  than  will  ever 
be  possible  before.  “The  time  will  come,”  it  has 
been  well  said,  “when  the  more  we  differ,  the  better 
we  shall  be  agreed:  differing  in  the  smaller,  agree- 
ing in  the  larger  things:  far  apart  in  the  spreading 
branches,  knit  together  in  the  sturdy  trunk.”  It  is 
possible  now  as  never  before  to  tolerate  great  diver- 
sities of  doctrine  within  a single  Church,  because 
men  are  learning  to  grant  to  others  the  liberty  which 
they  claim  for  themselves,  to  respect  differences  of 
conviction,  and  to  work  together  in  spite  of  them. 

No  single  denomination  now  in  existence  is  fitted 
to  gather  into  itself  the  various  divisions  of  Christen- 
I dom  and  thus  become  that  Church  of  the  future  for 
which  we  are  looking.  The  spirit  that  claims  that 
any  single  communion  is  entitled  to  be  recognized 
as  the  true  Church  of  Christ  in  an  exclusive  sense  is 
hostile  to  the  spirit  of  unity.  The  problem  of  unity 
is  not  to  be  solved  by  all  Christians  eventually  be- 
coming Baptists,  Methodists,  or  Episcopalians,  or 
by  any  similar  transformation;  nor  by  all  Chris- 
tians becoming  Protestants,  or  all  Roman  Catholics, 
or  members  of  the  Greek  Orthodox  Church.  So  far 
as  its  formal  organization  is  concerned,  it  is  evident 
that  organic  union  must  come,  not  through  exclusion 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


253 


or  compromise  or  absorption,  or  by  any  process,  so 
to  speak,  of  deglutition,  by  which  any  single  de- 
nomination will  swallow  up  the  rest,  like  another 
Aaron’s  rod  turned  serpent,  but  by  comprehension. 
The  three  hundred  bishops  of  the  Anglican  Church 
in  their  last  conference  in  Lambeth  Palace  said,  “We 
have  set  before  us  the  Church  of  Christ  as  he  would 
have  it,  one  Spirit  and  one  Body,  enriched  with  all 
those  elements  of  divine  truth  which  the  separated 
communities  of  Christians  now  emphasize  separately. 
. . . We  must  fix  our  eyes  on  the  Church  of  the 
future,  which  is  to  be  adorned  with  all  the  precious 
things,  both  theirs  and  ours.  We  must  constantly 
desire  not  compromise,  but  comprehension;  not 
uniformity,  but  unity.”  These  are  truly , irenic 
words.  There  must  be  abundant  room  withiii  the 
new  catholicity  for  differences  in  polity,  creed,  and 
ritual:  each  company  of  Christians  must  be  per- 
mitted to  bring  into  it  the  things  that  they  hold 
sacred.  Within  the  universal  Church,  which  is 
Christ’s  body,  there  is  unity  amid  diversity, — differ- 
ence in  functions  and  methods  with  unity  in  aim, 
diversity  in  gifts,  variety  in  manifestations,  but 
the  one  Spirit  everywhere, — and  the  whole  is  con- 
trolled by  the  Head,  which  is  Christ.  The  divisions 
that  Paul  decries  are  those  that  grow  out  of  a parti- 
san spirit,  and  that  rally  about  disruptive  and  par- 
tial interpretations  of  truth,  or  that  cleave  to  human 


254 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


leadership,  and  so  divide  the  indwelling  Christ:  he 
does  not  demand  uniformity  among  the  elements 
that  compose  the  Church.  Within  the  united 
Church  of  the  apostles  there  was  abundant  oppor- 
tunity for  differences  of  view  and  of  activity.  Paul 
and  Peter  did  not  always  see  eye  to  eye,  but  both 
frowned  upon  the  spirit  of  faction  and  dwelt  to- 
gether within  a catholic  Church. 

Where,  then,  shall  we  find  a foundation  broad  and 
stable  enough  for  the  erection  of  such  a Christian 
edifice  as  this?  Shall  we  seek  it  by  returning  to  the 
days  that  preceded  the  Reformation  and  starting 
anew?  “The  only  way  in  which  Roman  Chris- 
tianity and  Protestant  Christianity  can  legally  com- 
bine,” writes  Prof.  C.  A.  Briggs,  “is  for  Protestant 
Christianity  to  frankly  recognize  the  technical  irreg- 
ularity of  the  Reformation;  its  revolutionary  and 
illegal  character;  and  for  the  Roman  Church  to 
repeal  and  recall  all  its  unrighteous  discipline.”^ 
History  cannot  be  thus  unwritten.  The  conse- 
quences of  the  Reformation  are  irrevocable,  and  are 
too  precious  still  in  the  eyes  of  those  wRo  have 
profited  by  them  to  be  regretted  or  revoked.  Noth- 
ing that  this  generation  can  do  could  reach  back  into 
the  past  and  stay  the  hands  that  lighted  the  fires  of 
Smithfield,  Prague,  and  Rome,  any  more  than  it  can 
dim  the  luster  of  the  names  of  those  who  died  amid 


^ Church  Unity,  p.  174. 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


255 


their  flames.  And  even  if  Protestantism  could  be 
so  recreant  to  its  trust  and  so  false  to  its  history,  and 
to  the  prophets  and  martjTS  whose  deeds  adorn  its 
annals,  as  to  desire  to  undo  the  past,  could  Roman 
Catholicism,  now  fettered  by  the  doctrine  of  the 
infallibility  of  its  titular  head,  retract  its  pro- 
nouncements or  retrace  its  steps?  Protestantism 
must  first  unite  upon  a platform  so  broad  that  all 
can  stand  upon  it,  and  then  a united  Protestantism 
must  meet  a united  Catholicism  upon  the  level  of 
equality.  There  is  no  hope  for  organic  unity  except 
upon  what  Bishop  Brown  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  has  called  the  “level  plan.” 

No  progress  can  be  made  by  seeking  a basis  of 
reunion  in  the  days  before  the  Reformation,  or  in 
going  back  to  the  fifteenth  century  to  begin  over 
^ again.  Nor  shall  we  succeed  better  if  we  go  still 
further  back  to  the  second  and  third  centuries,  to 
find  in  the  diocesan  bishop  (then  first  distinguished 
from  the  parochial  bishop,  elder,  or  presbyter),  and 
his  successors,  the  visible  expression  and  source  of 
the  unity  of  the  Church,  for,  as  we  have  seen,  agree- 
ment as  to  polities  and  sources  of  authority  do  not 
suffice  to  create  or  to  sustain  the  unity  of  the 
Church  to-day.  The  doctrines  of  these  early  days, 
moreover,  will  serve  us  no  better.  “The  basis  of 
union,”  said  Dr.  Dollinger,  “must  be  the  Nicene 
Creed,  and  the  decisions  of  the  first  three  General 


256 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Councils.”  But,  alas,  the  decrees  of  the  first  three 
General  Councils  did  not  secure  unity  of  spirit  in 
their  day,  and  a unity  in  form  devoid  of  spiritual 
unity  is  a body  without  a soul,  powerless  and  dead. 
Subscription  to  creeds  will  not  unite  the  Church 
to-day.  There  are  churches,  such  as  the  Baptist, 
without  any  written  creeds  whatsoever,  that  manifest 
a rare  degree  of  unity  in  both  faith  and  order.  Nor 
is  the  desired  end  to  be  secured  by  returning  to  that 
conception  of  the  ordinances  that  was  unfolded  dur- 
ing these  many  years.  How  far  doctrines  as  to  the 
efficacy  of  the  sacraments,  as  they  have  been  de- 
veloped through  the  centuries,  have  been  influenced 
by  the  impact  of  pagan  ideas  upon  the  gospel  is  a 
question  upon  which  there  is  a legitimate  difference 
of  opinion  among  historians;  but  this  at  least  is 
true,  that  questions  as  to  polity,  creed,  and  sacra- 
ment are  all  of  them  dependent  upon  questions  of 
historic  fact,  and  this  alone  is  sufficient  to  destroy 
their  usefulness  as  grounds  of  unity.  Over  and  over 
again  the  Church  has  made  the  mistake  of  pinning  its 
faith  to  statements  of  fact  which  historical  criticism 
may  at  any  moment  prove  to  be  untenable.  It  is 
impossible  to  build  so  great  a structure  as  the  unity 
of  the  Church  upon  such  shifting  ground. 

The  only  dependable  basis  for  the  unity  of  the 
Church  is  to  be  found,  not  in  the  field  of  doctrine, 

I government,  or  ordinances,  but  in  the  field  of  spir- 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


257 


itual  experience,  in  a living  experience  of  God  in 
Christ  in  the  heart  of  the  believer,  the  same  to-day 
as  in  the  first  days  of  the  Church,  and  that  is  capa- 
ble of  perpetual  reproduction  in  the  lives  of  men  of 
every  age,  and  so  of  continual  renewal  and  substan- 
tiation for  each  generation  as  it  appears.  Of 
Peter’s  confession  of  his  Lordship,  Jesus  said,  “Upon 
this  rock  I will  build  my  Church.”  The  basis  of 
unity  that  sufficed  for  the  first  disciples  is  the  only 
basis  that  can  serve  the  twentieth  century. 

If  we  are  to  find  in  history  the  bond  of  unity  for 
the  Church  of  the  future,  we  must  go  back  to  the 
beginning.  To  return  to  the  days  that  preceded 
the  Reformation  or  even  to  those  of  the  Church 
of  the  first  centuries  will  not  avail;  for  with  every 
development  in  the  complexity  of  faith  the  seeds 
of  division  have  been  more  widely  sown.  If  a 
foundation  is  to  be  found  that  cannot  be  shaken,  we 
must  dig  below  the  accretions  of  the  centuries,  be- 
neath the  loam  and  the  subsoil  of  Christian  history 
to  the  simple  faith  of  the  first  disciples  of  the  Lord. 
The  fewer  and  simpler  the  principles  reckoned 
essential,  the  larger  the  munber  who  can  stand 
together  upon  them.  Particularity  breeds  diver- 
sity. What  held  together  the  group  of  disciples 
that  met  on  Pentecost  in  the  upper  room?  Sub- 
scription to  a written  creed?  Christians  before  the 
creeds  were  more  truly  united  than  have  been  any 
17 


258 


THE  UNION  OF  CHRISTIAN  FORCES 


Christians  since,  and  the  cause  of  unity  might  be  ad- 
vanced if  every  historic  creed  outside  the  Bible  were 
forgotten  or  lost.  Was  it  acceptance  of  a particular 
form  of  Church  polity?  Their  sense  of  unity  was  not 
the  result  of  a polity,  but  their  polity,  when  it  de- 
veloped, was  the  expression  of  their  unity.  What 
then  held  them  together?  Love  for  their  risen 
Lord!  Each  bound  to  the  Christ,  they  were  bound 
to  one  another.  Each  conscious  of  his  indwelling 
life,  they  were  united  in  the  enjoyment  of  a com- 
mon experience.  There  were  differences  within  that 
little  company  that  were  most  divisive:  differences, 
of  temperament,  as  between  John  and  Peter;  here, 
too,  was  Simon  the  zealot,  an  insurgent  against  the 
Roman  government  on  account  of  the  imposition 
of  the  taxes,  and  Matthew  the  publican,  a collector 
of  those  taxes.  Yet  in  Christ  they  were  united. 
It  was  first  a union  of  spirit  and  experience,  and  it 
resulted  in  a formal  and  organic  unity  in  work  and 
in  worship. 

Mere  oneness  is  not  sufficient:  it  must  be  one- 
ness in  Christ — “as  thou.  Father,  art  in  me,  and 
I in  thee;  that  they  also  may  be  in  us.”  That 
has  been  the  essence  of  true  catholicity  from  the 
beginning.  “We  first  meet  the  word  catholic,”  says 
Professor  Briggs,  “in  the  epistle  of  Ignatius,  the 
Bishop  of  Antioch,  to  the  church  at  Smyrna  early 
in  the  second  century,  in  the  sentence,  ‘Whereso- 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


259 


ever  the  bishop  shall  appear,  there  let  the  people  be; 
even  as  where  Jesus  may  be,  there  is  the  catholic 
Church.’  The  catholic  Church  is  the  Church  gath- 
ered about  Jesus  as  its  head,  just  as  the  church  at 
Smyrna  was  gathered  about  its  bishop.  The  cath- 
olic Church  is  thus  the  universal  Church  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  local  church,  the  Church 
throughout  the  whole  world,  under  Jesus  Christ, 
the  bishop  of  all.”^  The  achievement  of  unity 
upon  a basis  short  of  this:  a visible,  organic  unity 
cemented  by  anything  other  than  a common  loyalty 
to  “Jesus  Christ,  the  bishop  of  all,”  while  it  might 
seem  to  promise  a vast  increase  of  efficiency  and 
power,  would  prove  to  be  the  undoing  of  the  Church. 

It  is  in  this  direction  that  Christendom  must  look 
for  the  basis  of  the  unity  for  whieh  it  prays.  Creed 
must  be  reduced  to  the  irreducible  minimum  as  a 
requirement  for  membership  in  the  universal 
Church.  Says  Professor  Denney  in  his  Jesus  and 
the  Gospel,  “The  symbol  of  the  Church’s  unity  might 
be  expressed  thus:  T believe  in  God,  through 
Jesus  Christ,  his  only  Son,  our  Lord  and  Saviour.’  ” 
Is  more  than  this  needed?  The  widest  liberty  of 
conviction  as  to  the  validity  of  Church  polities  must 
be  accorded.  Said  Edward  Stillingfleet,  Bishop  of 
Worcester  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
“For  the  Church  to  require  more  than  Christ  him- 


* Church  Unity,  p.  47. 


260 


THE  UNION  OF  CHKISTIAN  FORCES 


self  did,  or  make  the  condition  of  her  communion 
more  than  our  Saviour  did  of  discipleship,  is  wholly 
unwarranted.”  Wise  words,  and  as  true  as  when 
first  spoken.  To  go  “back  to  Christ”  is  to  go  for- 
ward. Folly  and  mistake  began  when  the  Church 
forsook  its  Lord,  and  betook  itself  to  the  ordinances 
of  man.  Disunion  began  when  the  Church  over- 
took its  Master  and  sought  to  pass  him  by.  But 
to-day  the  Christ  still  leads  his  Church,  and  from  a 
position  far  in  advance  of  it  beckons  it  forward,  and 
calls  upon  it  to  renew  its  allegiance  to  the  simplicity 
of  the  gospel. 

“We  faintly  hear,  we  dimly  see. 

In  differing  phrase  we  pray; 

But  dim  or  clear,  we  own  in  Thee 
The  Light,  the  Truth,  the  Way.” 

The  Church  has  much  to  forget  before  it  can  at- 
tain unto  the  unity  of  the  faith:  it  has  also  much  to 
remember.  The  sovereign  cure  for  the  evils  of  dis- 
union into  which  Christianity  has  fallen  is  a purer 
and  simpler  Christianity.  The  Christ  who  prayed 
for  the  unity  of  his  Church  alone  can  effect  it;  but 
he  must  be  given  the  leadership  of  it.  As  mutual 
love  of  parents  and  children  holds  the  home  to- 
gether, in  spite  of  differences  of  belief  and  tempera- 
ment among  the  children,  so  love  for  one  another 
and  for  their  Lord  must  hold  together  Christians 


THE  BASIS  OF  ORGANIC  UNITY 


261 


of  every  name,  if  they  are  ever  to  be  held  together. 
For  this  there  is  no  substitute  in  schemes  of  Church 
unity,  whether  federal  or  organic.  When  love  of 
the  Lord  which  draws  them  together  is  strong 
enough  to  overcome  their  affection  for  the  “petted 
notions,  fondled  theologies,  and  idolized  ceremonials” 
which  separate  them,  nothing  can  keep  them  apart: 
they  wdll  come  together  and  find  a way  of  reconciling 
their  differences,  or  labor  and  pray  in  a united 
Church  in  spite  of  them.  William  Denny  very 
truly  says,  “There  are  problems  in  the  spiritual  and 
social  world  which  are  like  some  of  our  metals,  alto- 
gether refractory  to  low  temperatures.  They  will 
only  melt  with  great  heat,  and  there  is  no  other  way 
of  melting  them.”  When  Christians  desire  it 
earnestly  enough,  desire  it  more  than  they  desire  a 
hundred  and  one  other  things  which  are  incompat- 
ible with  it,  desire  it  passionately,  the  lost  secret 
of  Christian  unity  will  be  discovered  again,  and  the 
prayer  of  the  Lord  of  the  Church  that  his  disciples 
may  be  one  will  be  fulfilled. 


INDEX 


America,  racial  and  economic 
problems  of,  161 
American  Institute  of  Social 
Service,  155 

American  Sunday-School  Un- 
ion, 166,  220 

Apostolic  Age,  Church  in  the, 
45,  48 

Apostolic  Age,  The,  referred  to, 
46 

Apostolic  Succession  and  Chris- 
tian unity,  241 

Barbauld,  Mrs.  Letitia,  quoted, 
92 

Bible,  modern  view  of,  87 
Revised  Version  of,  91 
Brent,  Bishop  Chas.  H.,  pro- 
posal of,  223 

Briggs,  Prof.  C.  A.,  quoted, 
254,  258 

British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society,  220 

Brooks,  Phillips,  quoted,  192 
Brotherhood  of  Christian  Un- 
ity, 220 

Brown,  Dr.  Arthur  J.,  quoted, 
190,  204 

Bruce,  Prof.  A.  B.,  quoted,  76 

Calixtus,  George,  quoted,  217 
Calvin,  John,  quoted,  217 
Carroll,  Rev.  Henry  K.,  Asso. 
Sec’y  of  the  Federal  Council 
of  Churches  of  Christ  in 
America,  15,  106 
Catholicity,  cost  of,  61,  239 
Charity,  its  universal  quality, 
92 

Chicago  Council  of  City  Mis- 
sions, work  of,  117 
Chicago-Lambeth  Proposal,  81, 
220 

text  of,  241 


China,  Conferences  in,  198 
China  National  Convention,  84 
Christian  Education,  a field  for 
united  action,  119 
Christianity,  strongest  argu- 
ment for,  44 

Church  History,  value  of,  85 
Church  Polity,  development  of 
the  Roman  form,  51 
early  forms  of,  48 
City,  problems  of  the,  164 

religious  needs  of  the,  113 
Clarke,  James  Freeman,  quo- 
ted, 92 

Collectivism,  the  modern 
growth  of,  66 

Commission  on  Country  Life, 
125 

Commission  on  Social  Service, 
text  of  program  of,  107 
Commissions  on  Home  and 
Foreign  Missions,  work  of, 
109 

Conflict  of  Religions  in  the 
Early  Roman  Empire,  quo- 
ted, 49 

Conservatives  and  Liberals,  72 
Constructive  Quarterly,  estab- 
lishment of,  232 
quoted,  225 

Continuation  Committee  Con- 
ferences, 84,  195 
Cooperation  in  Service,  a basis 
for  union.  93,  159 
Council  at  Jerusalem,  46 
Council  of  Nicea,  50 
Country  Church,  problems  of, 
125,  143 

Country  Church,  The,  by  Gill 
and  Pinchot,  30 
Creeds,  modern  estimate  of, 
219 

place  of,  in  the  early 
Church,  257 

263 


INDEX 


Denney,  Prof.  James,  quoted, 
259 

Denny,  William,  quoted,  261 
Denominational  differences,  22, 
69 

misunderstandings,  83 
Denominations,  claims  of,  64 
persistence  of,  239 
present  number  of,  16 
rise  of,  63 

strength  of  various  bodies 
of,  25 

their  right  to  be,  214 
Department  of  Church  and 
Country  Life,  Surveys  of,  28 
Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor,  Bulletin  quoted,  17 
Development,  dangers  attend- 
ant upon,  63 

“Dissidenoe  of  dissent,”  53,  65 
Divisions,  cost  of,  20,  24,  34,  55 
Dollinger,  Johann  Joseph  Ignaz 
von,  quoted,  255 


Ecob,  Dr.  James  H.,  quoted,  14 
Edinburgh  Missionary  Con- 
ference, 208 

Evangelical  Alliance,  220 


Federal  Council  of  Churches  of 
Christ  in  America,  104,  220 
Federation,  various  forms  of 
described,  140 

Foreign  population,  missionary 
labors  among  the,  116 
Fremantle,  Canon  William 
Henry,  247 


Harnack,  Prof.  Adolph,  quoted, 
216 

Herrmann,  Prof.  Wilhelm, 
quoted,  89 
Hill,  Rowland,  70 
Hoar,  Hon.  Geo.  F.,  quoted, 
165 

“Holy  Catholic  Church,”  90 
Holy  Spirit,  the,  89 
Home  Missions  Council,  pro- 
gram of,  168 

Horizontal  Divisions  in  the 
Church,  72 

Hymns,  a bond  of  unity  be- 
tween different  denomina- 
tions, 91 

Immigration,  problems  of,  115 
India  National  Conference, 
minute  of,  195 

Individualism,  era  of  passing, 
66 

In  Praise  of  Legend,  quoted,  23 
Interdenominational  Commis- 
sion of  Maine,  153 
Commission  of  Utah,  178 

Japan,  rapid  development  of, 
73 

Jesus  and  the  Gospel,  quoted, 
259 

Jesus,  his  prayer  for  the  unity 
of  has  followers,  56,  239, 
258 

the  method  of,  40 

Kidd,  Benjamin,  quoted,  99 
Kriloff,  Ivan,  poem  by,  83 


Gibbons,  Cardinal  James, 
quoted,  224 

Gill,  C.  O.,  on  The  Country 
Church,  30 

Gladstone,  Wm.  E.,  quoted,  78 
Glover,  Prof.  T.  R.,  quoted,  49 
Good  Samaritan,  reference  to 
parable  of,  68 
Grotius,  Hugo,  217 
Guild,  Rev.  Roy  B.,  Ill 
Gulick,  Prof.  Sidney  L.,  visit 
to  Japan,  110 

264 


Lahore  Conference,  250 
Laymen’s  Missionary  Move- 
ment, 207 

League  of  Catholic  Unity,  220 
Leibniz,  G.  W.,  217 
Liberals  and  Conservatives,  72 
Liberty,  religious,  53 
Livingstone,  David,  quoted,  95 
Locke,  John,  217 
Lodge,  Sir  Oliver,  quoted,  63 
London  Missionary  Society, 
192 


INDEX 


Love,  the  great  essential  in 
Christian  unity,  96,  121,  258 


McFarland,  Rev.  Charles  S., 
Sec’y  of  the  Federal  Council 
of  Churches  of  Christ  in 
America,  106 
McGiffert,  A.  C.,  46 
Maine,  Interdenominational 
Commission  of,  153 
Massachusetts  Federation  of 
Churches,  statistics  collected 
by,  131 

Mathews,  Dr.  Shailer,  visit  to 
Japan,  110 
quoted,  214 

May,  Margaret,  poem  by, 
quoted,  234 
Medical  Missions,  205 
Melanchthon,  Philip,  217 
Milligan,  William,  quoted,  187 
Milton,  John,  217 
Ministerial  Orders,  validity  of, 
18,  244,  247 

Missouri,  survey  of,  145 
Mormonism,  164,  166 
Mott,  Dr.  John  R.,  quoted,  55, 
192 


“Neglected  Field  Survey,  The,” 
172  .. 

Nelson,  Admiral  Horatio,  in- 
cident of,  77 

Ohio,  survey  of,  135 
Oregon,  church  at  Freewater, 
146 

Overchurching,  27 
“Overlooking”  as  opposed  to 
Overchurching,  118,  172 
Owen,  John,  quoted,  82 


Parkhurst,  Dr.  Charles  H., 
quoted,  62 

Paul,  his  counsel  to  the  Ephe- 
sians, 104 

his  view  of  Christian 
unity,  46 

Peter’s  confession  of  Christ,  257 


Pinchot,  Gifford,  on  The 
Country  Church,  30 
Platon,  Archbishop,  quoted, 
226 

Platt,  Dr.  Ward,  quoted,  174 
Polity  as  a factor  in  Christian 
unity,  243 

Pools  in  the  Sand,  poem  by 
Margaret  May,  234 
Population,  church  member- 
ship in  proportion  to,  27 
growth  of  urban,  164 
Pragmatism,  219 
Prejudice,  the  waning  of,  64, 
218 

Reformation,  reference  to,  52 
Prof.  Briggs’  estimate  of 
the,  254 

Religion  and  Theology,  121, 
251 

Renaissance,  52 
Roman  Church,  development 
of  its  polity,  51 
organization  inviolable,224 
Romans,  religious  tolerance  of 
the,  62 

Root,  Rev.  E.  Tallmadge, 
quoted,  26,  132 

Rural  Church,  see  Country 
Church. 

Ruskin,  John,  quoted,  71 

Sacerdotalism,  245 
Salaries  of  ministers,  31 
Schaff,  Dr.  Philip,  quoted,  50 
Scholarship,  development  of 
modern,  86 

Service,  a basis  for  union,  93, 159 
Shakespeare,  Rev.  J.  H.,  pro- 
posal of,  231 

Simms,|Rev.  F.  Marion,  quoted, 
26 

Smith,  Prof.  Goldwin,  quoted, 
233 

Smyth,  Dr.  Newman,  quoted, 
215 

Social  Service,  Commission  of, 
text  of  program,  107 
Speneer,  Herbert,  referred  to, 
99 


265 


INDEX 


Stillingfleet,  Bishop  Edward, 
quoted,  259 

Strong,  Dr.  Frank,  quoted,  213 
Strong,  Rev.  Josiah,  quoted, 
155 

Sunday  and  Adult  School 
Union,  220 

Surveys  of  Department  of 
Church  and  Country  Life,  28 


Talmud,  legends  from  the,  84, 
98 

Taylor,  Jeremy,  217 

Theological  students,  catho- 
licity of,  74 

Theology  and  Religion,  121,  251 

The  Swan,  the  Crayfish,  and  the 
Pike,  poem  by  Ivan  Kriloff, 
83 

Toleration  sometimes  a form  of 
indifference,  64 

Tomlinson,  Rev.  E.  T.,  quoted, 
27 

Tompkins  County,  N.  Y., 
church  statistics  of,  30,  138 


Unity,  cost  of,  61 

demand  for,  on  the  foreign 
field,  186 

instances  of  what  is  being 
accomplished,  227 
in  theory  and  practice,  103 
of  the  first  disciples,  257 
widespread  desire  for,  39 

UtahlnterdenominationalCom- 
mission,  178 

Vermont  Plan  of  Church  Fed- 
eration described,  142 

Wesley,  John,  217 

West  China  Missions  Advisory 
Board,  203 

Western  States,  religious  sur- 
vey of,  172 

What  Must  the  Church  Do  to  Be 
Saved?  quoted,  26 

Williams,  Roger,  53 

Wilson,  Warren  H.,  on  the 
Country  Church,  129 

Zwingli,  Ulrich,  217 


266 


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